Welcome to Alton ...
Alton is located in Upshur County<1>.
We aren't confident of the location of Alton, so consider the above location to be an estimate.<2>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Alton, you might consider that their post office opened in 1884.
When the people of Alton refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Altonian<3>
Alton is 1,780 feet [543 m] above sea level.<4>.
Time Zone: Alton lies in the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT) and observes daylight saving time
Telephone area codes for Alton: (304) & (681)<5>
Communities Also Named Alton ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 37 communities that are also named Alton - they are located in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia (2), Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas (3), Kentucky, Louisiana (2), Maine, Michigan (2), Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nova Scotia, Ohio, Ontario (3), Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas (2), Utah and Virginia.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Alton.
Communities near Alton ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Alton.
- Buckhannon
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckhannon
- Buckhannon is located in Upshur County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,395 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Buckhannon <6>
- Mill Creek
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mill Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Creek
- Mill Creek is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 681 people
- Beverly
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly
- Beverly is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 657 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Beverly <6>
- Junior
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast) - Womelsdorf
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Womelsdorf have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Womelsdorf
- Womelsdorf is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 235 people
- Huttonsville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huttonsville
- Huttonsville is located in Randolph County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 209 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Huttonsville <6>
- Queens
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Queens
- Queens is located in Upshur County
- Tenmile
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north) - Adrian
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adrian
- Adrian is located in Upshur County
- Hoover Town
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hoover Town have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoover Town
- Hoover Town is located in Upshur County
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 Alton. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Alton.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Alton. 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 Alton.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Alton. See our Newspapers Page for Alton.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Alton ...
Looking for more information about Alton? 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.
While we are unaware of a Tourism page that is specific to Alton, there are neighboring communities that do have Tourism pages. A map of those communities can be found with our TripAdvisor Page for Alton.
Adding Alton to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Alton 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 for Alton was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<8>
From that list, the Alton post office opened in 1884.
We also found Alton in the book titled Business Atlas and Shippers' Guide (1895).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Alton.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Alton. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of West Virginia: https://www.wv.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of West Virginia's counties, including Upshur, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace. |
| <3> | A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Alton refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a community's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Alton may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <4> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Alton - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <5> | Area code (681) is an overlay for area code (304). |
| <6> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <7> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <8> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |