Carbon County, Wyoming
| Carbon County, Wyoming | |
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Carbon County Courthouse in Rawlins
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 Location in the U.S. state of Wyoming |
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 Wyoming's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | 1868 |
| Named for | Coal deposits |
| Seat | Rawlins |
| Largest city | Rawlins |
| Area | |
| • Total | 7,964 sq mi (20,627 km2) |
| • Land | 7,898 sq mi (20,456 km2) |
| • Water | 66 sq mi (171 km2), 0.8% |
| Population (est.) | |
| • (2015) | 15,559 |
| • Density | 2.0/sq mi (1/km²) |
| Congressional district | At-large |
| Time zone | Mountain: UTC-7/-6 |
| Website | www |
Carbon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wyoming. As of the 2010 census, the population was 15,885. Its county seat is Rawlins. It is north from the Colorado state line.
Carbon County was organized in 1868.
Originally about 3,400 square miles (8,800 km2) in the center of Carbon County were once part of the Spanish Empire, then part of the Republic of Texas (1835-1845) and part of the State of Texas until 1852 when the northernmost part of that state was ceded to the U.S. government. This area is defined by the 42nd parallel on the north, and straight lines south from there to the headwaters of the Arkansas river on the east and the headwaters of the Rio Grande on the west. The documents defining that area include the Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819, the 1824 Constitution of Mexico, and the 1845 "Joint Resolution for the Admission of the State of Texas into the Union".
Carbon County was organized December 16, 1868, from Laramie County in Dakota Territory, which at the time had jurisdiction over part of modern-day Wyoming. It became a county in Wyoming Territory when that territory's government was formally organized on May 19, 1869.
In 1868, the Union Pacific Railroad opened the first coal mine in Carbon County, and the county was named for its extensive coal deposits. In 1875, Carbon County lost territory when Johnson County was created by the legislature of the Wyoming Territory. Natrona County was created with land ceded by Carbon County in 1888. The boundaries of the county were final at that time except for minor adjustments in 1911.
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