Previous Jurisdictions to Land in Arizona

United States Arizona  Previous Jurisdictions to land in Arizona

Previous Jurisdictions and Record Repositories
Locating records of your ancestors
 * Find where your ancestor lived
 * Identify when your ancestor live there
 * Locate the jurisdiction covering the land where your ancestor lived
 * Determine the record repositories for that jurisdiction

For example, suppose you believe your ancestor lived in Tucson, Arizona in 1861. Putting this altogether, your ancestor actually lived in Tucson, Arizona County, New Mexico Territory in 1861. Therefore look for records in Tucson, Dona Ana County, and the State of New Mexico archives.
 * In the present day, Tucson is indeed located in the State of Arizona.
 * But Arizona didn't exist in 1856. Arizona Territory wasn't created until 1863.
 * Before that, the land belonged to New Mexico Territory, which was created in 1850. Your ancestor lived in New Mexico Territory. This jurisdiction still exists today as the State of New Mexico.
 * In 1853, the US bought the Gadsden Purchase from Mexico, which contained land south of the Gila River. This is the land where Tucson is located. In 1854, this land was given to New Mexico Territory and in 1855 this land was added to Dona Ana county.
 * Then in 1860, New Mexico created Arizona county from the land in Dona Ana county. Arizona County existed totally within the present day State of Arizona. Your ancestor lived in Arizona County in the New Mexico Territory. But Arizona county was discontinued in 1862, then recreated in 1863 and finally discontinued again when Arizona Territory was created in 1863. The records from this extinct county are found in the present day in Dona Ana County in the State of New Mexico.

Sometimes, records were recorded in a county where your ancestor did not live. Maybe there was confusion as to where the borders lay. Or maybe it was a shorter distance to the neighboring county seat. There could be several reasons, so don't overlook records in nearby counties. But treat this as the exception to the rule and check the most obvious county first.

Land that would become Arizona from 1846 To 1863
18 Aug 1846 - During the war with Mexico, the US took control of Santa Fe and proclaimed sovereignty over the land that later became the New Mexico Territory. Look for records in the National Archives and Records Administration, the Mexico Archives and the New Mexico State Records Center and Archives.

4 July 1848 - The US obtained clear title to the previous Mexico land. Through the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, Mexico ceded all of present day California, Nevada, and Utah, and parts of present day Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming. Part of the international boundary was in dispute. The land south of the Gila River in present day Arizona was not ceded, it remained in control of Mexico. Look for records in the National Archives and Records Administration, the Mexico Archives and the New Mexico State Records Center and Archives.

13 Dec 1850 - The US created the New Mexico Territory from unorganized federal land. This territory named after the country of Mexico. Some counties were created, but they were small and covered land only in present day New Mexico. The land in the present day Arizona was at that time unorganized county land. Also the land south of the Gila River still belonged to Mexico. Look for records in the Mexico Archives and the New Mexico State Records Center and Archives.

9 Jan 1852 - New Mexico redefined the boundaries of previous counties and created new ones to cover all the land within its territory. The boundaries of Bernalillo, Rio Arriba, Santa Ana (extinct), Taos, and Valencia counties were stretched across present day Arizona and Nevada to the California border. Look for records in Bernalillo, Rio Arriba, Taos, and Valencia counties. 9 Jan 1852 - New Mexico redefined the boundaries of previous counties and created new ones to cover all the land within its territory. The boundary of Socorro County was stretched across present day Arizona to the California border. Look for records in Socorro County. 9 Jan 1852 - New Mexico redefined the boundaries of previous counties and created new ones to cover all the land within its territory. The boundary of Dona Ana County was stretched to include land in present day Arizona. Look for records in Dona Ana County.

30 Dec 1853 - The US bought the Gadsden Purchase from Mexico. It contained lands south of the Gila River in present day Arizona and New Mexico. It also settled the International boundary dispute between the United States and Mexico. Look for records in the National Archives and Records Administration, the Mexico Archives, and the New Mexico State Records Center and Archives.

4 Aug 1854 - The land acquired in the Gadsden Purchase was officially added to New Mexico Territory, it became non-county land. Look for records in the New Mexico State Records Center and Archives.

3 Feb 1855 - Dona Ana County gained all the land acquired in the Gadsden Purchase. The boundary was stretched across present day Arizona to the Baja California border. Look for records in Dona Ana County.

1 Feb 1860 - New Mexico created Arizona County from land in Dona Ana County. Arizona County was located entirely within present day Arizona. Look for records in Dona Ana County.

12 Jan 1861 - New Mexico created San Juan (original, extinct) from land in Taos County. Look for records in Taos County.

18 Jan 1862 - New Mexico discontinued San Juan (original, extinct) returning the land to Taos County. Look for records in Taos County. 18 Jan 1862 - New Mexico discontinued Arizona County returning the land to Dona Ana County. Look for records in Dona Ana County.

28 Jan 1863 - New Mexico re-created Arizona County from Dona Ana County. Look for records in Dona Ana County.

From 1863 To Now
24 Feb 1863 - The US created the Arizona Territory from the western half of New Mexico Territory. All previous counties were discontinued for this new territory. Look for records in the Arizona State Library and New Mexico State Records Center and Archives 10 Nov 1864 - Arizona created four counties: Mohave, Pima, Yavapai, and Yuma counties. All four of these counties named for Indian tribes. Look for records in Mohave, Pima, Yavapai, and Yuma counties. 22 Dec 1865 - Arizona created Pah-Ute County from the northern half of Mohave County. This county named for the Paiute Indians, using the spelling of that day. Both Mohave and Pah-Ute counties covered land which was later given to Nevada. Look for records in Mohave County. 5 May 1866 - The US removed the northwest corner from Arizona Territory (parts of Pah-Ute and Mohave counties) and gave that land to the State of Nevada. Nevada used that land to add to Lincoln and Nye counties. But Arizona previously had claim to that land and opposed this transfer, twice petitioning congress to repeal the law. Up thru 1868, representatives from Pah-Ute County attended the Arizona Legislature. Look for records in Lincoln, Nye, and Mohavecounties. 18 Feb 1869 - Utah also laid claim to land in the southeastern corner of Nevada by creating Rio Virgin County from land in Washington County, Utah; as well as land outside of Utah in Nevada and Arizona. This county named for the Virgin River. Look for records in Washington, Lincoln, Nye, and Mohave counties. 14 Feb 1871 - Arizona created Maricopa County from land in Yavapai County. This county named for the Maricopa Indians. Look for records in Maricopa and Yavapai counties. 18 Feb 1871 - Arizona discontinued Pah-Ute County. In effect, withdrawing claim to that land after exhausting all legal recourse. The remnant of Pah-Ute County still in Arizona was returned to Mohave County. Look for records in Mohave County. 16 Feb 1872 - Utah discontinued Rio Virgin County. In effect, withdrawing claim to that land after exhausting all legal recourse. The remnant of Rio Virgin County still in Utah was returned to Washington County. Look for records in Washington County. 1 Feb 1875 - Arizona created Pinal County from lands in Maricopa and Pima counties. This county named for the Pinal Indians. Look for records in Maricopa, Pima, and Pinal counties. 14 Feb 1879 - Arizona created Apache County from land in Yavapai County. This county named for the Apache Indians. Look for records in Apache and Yavapai counties. 1 Feb 1881 - Arizona created Cochise County from the eastern part of Pima County. This county named for Cochise, the great Apache warrior who had died seven years before. Look for records in Cochise and Pima counties. 8 Feb 1881 - Arizona created Gila County from lands in Maricopa and Pima County counties. This county named for the Gila River. Look for records in the Gila, Maricopa, and Pima counties. 10 Mar 1881 - Arizona created Graham County from lands in Apache and Pima counties. This county named for an early Arizona pioneer. Look for records in Apache, Graham, and Pima counties. 19 Feb 1891 - Arizona created Coconino County from land in Yavapai County. This county named for the Coconino Indians. Look for records in Coconino and Yavapai counties. 21 Mar 1895 - Arizona created Navajo County from the west half of Apache County. This county named for the Navajo Indians. Look for records in Apache and Navajo counties. 15 Mar 1899 - Arizona created Santa Cruz County from land in Pima County. This county named for the Santa Cruz River. Look for records in Pima and Santa Cruz counties. 10 Mar 1909 - Arizona created Greenlee County from land in Graham County. This county named for an early Arizona pioneer. Look for records in Graham and Greenlee counties. 27 Apr 1983 - Arizona created La Paz County from the northern half of Yuma County. This county named for the town of La Paz, Arizona. Look for records in La Paz and Yuma counties.