Saratoga County (Jefferson Territory)
The Saratoga County was a county of the out of the US law Jefferson Territory , which consisted of 28 November 1859 to 28 February. 1861
history
In July 1858, gold was discovered along the South Platte River in the Arapahoe County , Kansas Territory . This discovery sparked the Pikes Peak gold rush . Many residents of the mining area felt separated from the distant territorial governments of Kansas and Nebraska , so they voted on October 24, 1859 to form their own Jefferson Territory. In the following months, the Jefferson Territory General Assembly agreed to organize 12 counties: Arapahoe County , Cheyenne County , El Paso County , Fountain County , Heele County , Jackson County , Jefferson County , Mountain County , North County , Park County , Saratoga Counties and St. Vrain Counties . Saratoga County was named after Saratoga Springs , New York , because of the mineral hot springs found in the county. The county covers large parts of what is now Grand County , Colorado.
The Jefferson Territory never received state support. On February 28, 1861, United States President James Buchanan signed a bill that organized the Colorado Territory . On November 1, 1861, the Colorado General Assembly organized 17 counties, including Grand County, for the new Colorado Territory.
County seat
The county seat of Saratoga County was the mining town of Breckinridge . Today Breckenridge is the county seat of Summit County , Colorado.
Elections and elected officials
The first official to serve in Saratoga County was John W. McIntyre, who was appointed presiding judge of Saratoga County by Governor Robert W. Steele in December 1859 . He held the post until the first election on January 2, 1860.
Individual evidence
- ↑ An Act Defining the Boundaries of Counties and for other purposes . In: Provisional Laws and Joint Resolutions of the General Assembly of Jefferson Territory . General Assembly of the Territory of Jefferson. November 28, 1859. Retrieved August 27, 2009.
- ^ An Act to provide a temporary Government for the Territory of Colorado ( PDF ; 18 kB) 36th US Congress. February 28, 1861. Retrieved November 26, 2007.