[6] The Territorial Legislature of Washington Territory first carved Stevens County from Walla Walla County in 1863 to encompass all the land from the Columbia River west to the Cascades and north of the Wenatchee River.

It was founded at the end of the nineteenth century by gold prospectors and was incorporated in 1900.

Barker was notably facing charges at the federal level at that time from allegations of conspiring and abetting bootleggers.

Its replacement, made of concrete and stucco, was under consideration beginning in 2018 for historical preservation.

[11] On August 13, 2001, a series of major wildfires and complexes were ignited by regional lightning storms passing over eastern Washington.

[12] Among them was the Mount Leona Fire which burned for several weeks and encompassed over 6,000 acres in the central Kettle River range northeast of Curlew Lake.

It swings south again on the eastern side of the Kettle River Range and passes into the US just east of the Lauier border crossing and is the northern section of the Ferry-Stevens county Border before joining with the Columbia River north of Barney's Junction.

Highway 20 crosses over the Kettle River Range along the southern shoulder of Sherman Peak at Sherman Pass, which at 5,575 feet (1,699 m) is highest mountain pass open all year in the state.

Crossing the county east to west is the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail, which enters the county along the Boulder pass highway, turns south along the Kettle Crest National Recreation Trail and turns west again along the 13 mile trail.

Ferry County reaches to Canada on the north, and to the Columbia River on the east.

As a result, only eighteen percent of the total county area is taxable-use ground.

Washington State Highway 20, designated a National Scenic Highway, crosses the county east–west, and has the state's highest navigable pass (5,575 feet above sea level).

The county seat, Republic, is the site of the Stonerose Interpretive Center and Fossil Site, which exhibits and explains Eocene-era fossils from an ancient lake bed north of Republic.

14.1% were of German, 9.5% United States or American, 9.1% Irish, and 7.6% English ancestry.

24.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

[26] County-wide law enforcement is provided by the Ferry County Sheriff Office which is headquartered in Republic.