Bear Lake County

Bear Lake County is a county in the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2010 Census the county had a population of 5,986. The county seat is Paris, and Montpelier is the largest city.The county is named after Bear Lake, a large alpine lake at an elevation of above sea level. The northern half of the 20-mile-long (32 km) lake is in Idaho, the southern half in Utah. The county was established in 1875 in the Idaho Territory, fifteen years before statehood.HistoryPeg-Leg Smith established and operated a trading post on the Oregon Trail from 1848-1850 near Dingle. The first settlement in the Bear Lake Valley was Paris, settled by Mormon pioneers led by Charles Rich on September 26, 1863. Thirty families comprised the original settlement. In the spring of 1864, Montpelier was settled on the other side of the valley on the Oregon Trail. Bear Lake County was established in 1875, and the railroad was extended through Montpelier in 1892.GeographyAccording to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and (6.1%) is water. The county is centered on Bear Lake Valley and includes the surrounding mountain ranges. The valley is high in the mountains, with its lowest elevation over 5900ft above sea level. The highest point in the county is Meade Peak at.