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A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
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Welcome to Alta ...

Alta is located in Placer County<1>.

While we don't have a date for the founding of Alta, you might consider that their post office opened in 1871.

Alta is 3,600 feet [1,097 m] above sea level.<2> In other words, the altitude of Alta is about ¾ mile [or ~1 km] above sea level.

Time Zone: Alta lies in the Pacific Time Zone (PST/PDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area Codes for Alta: 530 & 837<3>

The ZIP code for Alta: 95701<4>

Communities Also Named Alta ...

Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are two California communities named Alta: This one is located in Placer County and the other is located in San Diego County.

Beyond California, there are 21 communities that are also named Alta - they are located in Alabama, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas (3), Kentucky, Montana (2), North Dakota, Ohio (2), Tennessee, Utah (2), West Virginia (2) and Wyoming.

For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Alta.

Communities near Alta ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Alta.

To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.

We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Alta. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Alta.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Alta. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Alta.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Alta. See our Newspapers Page for Alta.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Alta ...

Looking for more information about Alta? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

In addition to the Tourism page for Alta, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Alta.

Adding Alta to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Alta in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.

From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found (so far) for Alta was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<6>

From that list, the Alta post office opened in 1871.

For more details, see References and Mentions for Alta.

Footnotes ...

<1>If you're interested in how the shape of California's counties, including Placer, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<2>The elevation is an estimate for the area around Alta - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<3>When there's a risk of an area code running out of phone numbers, an 'Overlay Area Code' is created that has the same geographic boundaries as the existing area code. In this case, the 530 code has been Overlayed with the 837 area code. New phone numbers in the Alta area will be assigned with one of these codes: 530 or 837. As a result, placing a call in the Alta area will require 10-digit dialing (where you enter both the area code and then the phone number).
<4>ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a community (such as Alta). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Alta or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).
<5>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<6>A copy of the Blevins & Helbock Post Office list with background information can be found at:

      https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/