There was a time when people in Linkville, the precursor to Klamath Falls, had to journey more than 100 miles over the Cascades to reach the county seat in Jacksonville, Ore. The town of Linkville, population 250, was in Jackson County until Feb. 1, 1875, when the eastern portion of the county became Lake County.
Linkville became Lake County’s seat, providing services for some 900 people in an area that now includes both Lake and Klamath counties. Less than a year later, an election moved the county seat to Bullard’s Ranch, the site of today’s Lakeview.
Determined to regain county-seat status, Linkville’s state representative, E.C. Mason, pushed legislation through to create Klamath County out of the western portion of Lake County. Linkville became the Klamath County seat on Nov. 6, 1882. Ten years later Linkville and its post office were renamed Klamath Falls.
The first Klamath County courthouse building opened on July 2, 1888, on Main Street. Converted to an apartment building, the wood-frame structure stands today at the corner of Fourth and Walnut streets.
Source: Wynne, Floyd L. “Great Moments in Klamath History.” Maverick Publications, Bend, Ore. 2005.
