Garfield County is named for a U.S. president

The name on the map often carries a small piece of history, and Garfield County is a clear example.

The county was created in 1883, in the years when Colorado was still sorting its western counties out of much larger ones. It was named in honor of James A. Garfield, the U.S. president who had been in office shortly before. Naming a new county for a recent president was a common way to mark the era, and that is the story behind this one.

Glenwood Springs sits at the heart of the county and serves as the county seat. That is where the courthouse and the main county offices are, which is why so much county business points back to that town even though the county stretches well past it, east toward the Roaring Fork valley and west down the Colorado River toward Rifle, Silt, New Castle, and Parachute.

Knowing the name’s origin will not change a property line or a tax bill. But for someone new to the area, it helps the map make sense: the county is a single unit with one history, even though daily life happens in several different towns and a lot of open country between them.

For the documented record of when the county was formed and how it was named, see the Colorado State Archives and History Colorado.