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The early history of Douglas County was closely tied to that of Umpqua County. Umpqua County, created in 1851, was located along the Umpqua River in southwestern Oregon. Gold had been discovered in the Umpqua region resulting in the rapid increase in settlement of the new county. The first meeting of the Umpqua County Court was in Elkton in 1852; later the county government was moved to Green Valley and Yoncalla.
Because the population of Umpqua County had rapidly increased and met the population requirements for a new county, a new county was created on January 7, 1852, out of that portion of Umpqua County lying east of the Coast Range. It was named Douglas County to honor U. S. Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois who was a congressional advocate for Oregon statehood.
Meanwhile, in Umpqua County the gold mining boom played out, and the population of Umpqua County decreased until finally in 1862 it was absorbed into Douglas County and ceased to exist. In 1856 the Camas Valley was annexed to Douglas County from Coos County and further boundary adjustments were made with Jackson and Lane Counties in 1915. Today, Douglas County covers 5,071 square miles and is bounded by Curry, Jackson, and Josephine Counties to the south; Klamath County to the east; Lane County to the north; and Coos County and the Pacific Ocean to the west.
In the county seat of Roseburg, courthouses were built in 1855, 1870, 1891, and 1929. The 1929 courthouse is still in use. Umpqua County never had a courthouse.
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