What is the smallest county in the United States? It’s such a simple question but there are many ways to approach it. It really depends. Would it be the smallest parcel of land that actually carries the title “county?” Does it require a distinct, functional government with specific attributes? What about independent cities that provide citizens with similar services and which the U.S. Census Bureau calls “county equivalents?” These considerations all lead to different conclusions. Over the next several articles I will explore various perspectives and discuss leading candidates for the Smallest County designation.
A Primary Claimant
Kalawao County, Hawaii is the smallest administrative unit in the United States explicitly called a county (map). It has a landmass of 13.21 square miles. A mere speck. Hands down and without a doubt, nothing in the United States called a “county” is smaller than Kalawao.
However it is debatable whether it should quality as a functional county due to its geography, history, governance and future. Kalawao County encompasses the Kalaupapa Peninsula on the north shore of Moloka’i. A steep mountainous curtain completely walls it off from the remainder of the island. No roads lead to Kalawao. Visitors arriving by land must negotiate a rugged foot trail over the mountains. Such a small, isolated, and remote spot seems an unusual choice for a standalone county.
Establishment
It make more sense in the context of the county’s history, for it was here that the Belgian priest Father Damien provided a haven for individuals suffering from Hansen’s Disease (then known as leprosy). The Hawaiian government forced people afflicted with Hansen’s Disease to live in the colony beginning in the 1880’s as a way to suppress the contagion.
Later it designated this remote spot as a separate county when it established a county structure in 1905, probably as a way to reinforce its isolation. Advances in medicine eventually rendered Hansen’s Disease both treatable and non-communicable.
The Kalaupapa quarantine ended in 1969 and the underpinning logic behind the existence of Kalawao County lifted with it. However many of the residents had grown accustomed to life in their remote, self-reliant community. In a humanitarian gesture the state allowed them to remain in Kalawao County for the rest of their lives but no new resident could join them.
There is no doubt that Kalawao is an established county under the laws of Hawaii. Even so the state severely limited its functions and it operates quite differently than the other four counties within the state. It places Kalawao County under the “jurisdiction and control” of the Department of Health. It also established a single county officer — a sheriff — appointed by the Department of Health from amongst the patient-residents.
A Special Case
The U.S. Census Bureau considers Kalawao to be a county for census purposes, and includes coverage for it both on its map and its statistics. The population cannot replenish and it continues to drop as it ages. The Bureau recorded 147 residents in 2000, falling to 90 in 2010. Eventually it will become zero.
It is the only county in the United States with restricted access. Visitors must obtain permission to enter. People can get permits fairly readily through officially-sanctioned tours conducted by authorized operators. But people can’t just show up and walk in. Plus, anyone under 16 years is totally out of luck. State law prohibits their presence entirely.
For all of these unusual reasons and special circumstances, it is debatable whether Kalawao can actually be considered a county in anything more than name only. The National Association of Counties does not list Kalawao as a county. Its population will disappear in another generation and it will likely cease to exist as a county even in name. The point will become moot.
Kalawao is the smallest county in the United States today. But is it truly a county?
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