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Bernalillo County
Bernalillo was one of the seven partidos established during Mexican rule. The division of counties in New Mexico can be traced back to this time. The first subdivison of the New Mexico Territory was made in 1837 when two partidos -- districts -- were created. In 1844, New Mexico was re-divided into three districts. Eventually these districts were further subdivided into areas that include similar boundaries to New Mexico’s first counties. It was likely named for the Gonzales-Bernal family that lived in the area prior to the 1692 Re-conquest. In 1852, Bernalillo County became one of the nine original counties created by the Territorial Legislature. Although in land size (1,169 square miles) it is New Mexico’s second smallest county, Bernalillo County has New Mexico’s largest population. Bernalillo County sits in Central New Mexico astride the Rio Grande and its county seat is currently Albuquerque. The first county seat was the town of Los Ranchos de Albuquerque from 1851-1853, after which it was moved to “Old Town” in 1854, then to Bernalillo in 1878. Albuquerque was selected as the county seat in 1878 and remains so to today.
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