Lake County is located on the north central portion of California.  The population as of 2010 was 64,665, up from 58,309 from the 2000 census.  Lakeport is the county seat. The county has two courthouses, one in Lakeport and the other at Clearlake. Lakeport and Clearlake are the only two incorporated cities in the county.

Lake County has a long history of being a  farming community and in the 1870s vineyards were planted there. By the early 20th century the area producing some of the world’s greatest wines. The Prohibition in the 1920s ended wine production in the county. A re-emergence of the wine industry began during the 1960s when a few growers began planting vineyards. The area went from fewer than 100 acres (0.4 km2) of grapevines in 1965 to over 8,800 acres (36 km2) of vineyards today.

The name of the county is derived from Clear Lake, the largest natural lake wholly within California, and the dominant geographic feature of the county. Clear Lake is believed to be the one of the oldest lakes, if not the oldest in North America.