The Nataqua Territory was a short lived and unofficial territory of the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It consisted of a portion of what is now northeastern California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 and northwestern Nevada

Nevada

Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...

, centered on Susanville, California

Susanville, California

Susanville is the county seat of Lassen County, California, United States. Susanville is located on the Susan River in the south-central part of the county, at an elevation of 4186 feet . The population was 17,974 at the 2010 census, up from 13,541 at the 2000 census...

. In 1856, the border between California and the Utah Territory

Utah Territory

The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....

 was unsurveyed and poorly defined. Local residents took advantage of this ambiguity and justified their resistance to tax collectors from Plumas County, California

Plumas County, California

Plumas County is a county located in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California. The county gets its name from the Spanish words for the Feather River , which flows through the county. As of the 2010 census, the population 20,007, down from 20,824 at the 2000 census...

, by proclaiming themselves part of the Nataqua Territory. The independence movement was led by Peter Lassen

Peter Lassen

Peter Lassen was a Danish-American blacksmith, rancher, prospector and Freemason.-Early life:Peter Lassen was born on October 31, 1800 in Farum, Denmark and immigrated to Boston, Massachusetts in 1830...

 and Isaac Roop

Isaac Roop

Isaac Newton Roop was a lifelong member of the Whig party, United States politician, and pioneer.-Biography:Roop was born in Carroll County, Maryland. He married his tutor, Nancy Gardner, on December 24, 1840...

. Association with the Utah Territory was unpalatable to the residents due to anti-Mormonism. The first governor

Governor

A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...

 of the territory was Lassen, followed by Roop in 1859 (after Lassen's death).

Subsequent to the formation of the Nevada Territory

Nevada Territory

The Territory of Nevada was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until October 31, 1864, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Nevada....

 in 1861, Roop County, Nevada

Roop County, Nevada

Roop County is a defunct county of Nevada. It was created as Lake County in 1861 as one of the original nine counties of Nevada. The name Lake County was chosen on account of the many lakes in the area, including Honey Lake, Pyramid Lake, and Winnemucca Lake.-History:In 1862 Lake County was...

, was formed encompassing the area of the Nataqua Territory, and the pretense of independence was dropped. In 1863 a border survey found Susanville and virtually all the population of Roop County was actually in California. The California portion of Roop County became Lassen County, California

Lassen County, California

Lassen County is a county located in the northeastern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 34,895, up from 33,828 at the 2000 census...

in 1864.