The county is surrounded by Boundary County to the North, Montana to the East, Kootenai County to the South and Washington to the West. The county consists of 1,748 square miles. The county contains timbered mountains, valleys and two large lakes. The county seat, Sandpoint, is a city of approximately 5,500 residents nestled between the shores of Lake Pend Oreille and the neighboring mountains.
The area was first called the Northwest Territory. It was later changed to the Washington Territory during 1858 and then the Oregon country. In 1863 it was renamed Idaho Territory. Idaho became a state in 1890. Prior to 1864 the area was known as Shoshone County. Kootenai County was formed in 1864 at the 2nd session of the Idaho Territorial legislature. This new county consisted of current day Benewah, Kootenai, Bonner and Boundary counties. Seneaquoteen was designated on paper as the county seat; however, no "official" county business was ever conducted there. In the early 1800's the railroad contributed to an increase in population. Rathdrum became the new county seat because it was the largest city.
During 1894 - 1905 the Spaulding Bill was created to divide Kootenai County into two new counties: Lewis County with Sandpoint as the county seat, and Clark County with Coeur d' Alene as the county seat. This bill failed since the Idaho Supreme Court ruled that a county seat could not be changed without consent from the voters.
On February 21, 1907, Bonner County was established with Sandpoint as the seat. The county consisted of present day Bonner and Boundary Counties. The county and Bonners Ferry city were named after Edwin L. Bonner, who in 1864 established a ferry on the Kootenai River near present day Bonners Ferry, ID.
In 1915 Boundary County was split from Bonner County.
Copyright (c) 2000, Mary Garrison
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Page updated May 2021
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Coordinator - Randy Cummings
State Coordinator - Kerry A Hairston