Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Los Altos Hills

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
C−History
History · Los Altos Hills

Los Altos Hills was first counted by the census in 1960, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 23% of U.S. towns · #409 of 847 in California. What drives it

Its Register listings are the Willard Griffin House and Carriage House and the Lantarnam Hall. Most of Los Altos Hills was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. Below: maps from 1897 on and the census since 1960.

1960first census
2on the National Register
2%homes built before 1940
4famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Los Altos Hills began

When was Los Altos Hills founded?

1960

Los Altos Hills first appears in the census in 1960.

First census: 3,412 in 19602020 census: 8,48966 years

How historic is Los Altos Hills?

C−

More historic than 23% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first census.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Los Altos Hills’ History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Los Altos Hills is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #409 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Los Altos Hills’ overall grade.
Founding era1960, from the first census: founded 1945 or later, an older era than 2% of U.S. townsD−Homes built before 19402.1% of homes (±1.6) · typical CA town 3.4% · U.S. 8.4%C−National Register2 listings, 3 historic buildings, 3.6 per 10,000 residents · typical CA town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 23%
NewerOlder
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 52%

Few California towns list much on the Register (a typical California town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Los Altos Hills’ 3.6 sits above most of its state (85% of California towns have fewer) while its 3 historic buildings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to B−. The pre-1940 share (±1.6 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: the first census (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Los Altos Hills’ past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Los Altos Hills are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18976 editions of the USGS map, 1897 to 1991. Watch Los Altos Hills change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Los Altos Hills’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Los Altos Hills’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Los Altos Hills on the map, 1897 to 1991

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Los Altos Hills. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Los Altos Hills on the 1897 USGS mapLos Altos Hills on the 1943 USGS mapLos Altos Hills on the 1953 USGS mapLos Altos Hills on the 1961 USGS mapLos Altos Hills on the 1973 USGS mapLos Altos Hills on the 1991 USGS map1897Palo Alto sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Los Altos Hills.

The story

How Los Altos Hills came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Los Altos Hills.

Read it all →

The earliest inhabits in the area were the Ohlone, who maintained multiple villages nearby.

The area of Los Altos Hills consisted of two large Spanish–Mexican land grants: Rancho San Antonio de Padua and Rancho La Purísima Concepción. The land for Rancho San Antonio de Padua was given in 1839 by Governor Juan Bautista Alvarado to Spanish commander of Alta California, Juan Prado Mesa. When Mesa died in 1845, the land went into probate, with two claims honored.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Los Altos Hills, 1897 to 1997

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1897On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 20th century
  4. 1924Born hereCal Rossi is born here
  5. 1988Born hereMax Thieriot is born here
  6. 1993Born hereSimon Rosenbaum is born here
  7. 1997Born hereDaniel Rosenbaum is born here
By decade

Los Altos Hills, decade by decade

Today30 recent
Berkshire pigs at a farm in Los Altos Hills, CA - 32021Berkshire pigs at a farm in Los Altos Hills, CA - 3Pride of Madeira by Hale Creek Mary Stutz Path2020Pride of Madeira by Hale Creek Mary Stutz PathMoody Rd - Page Mill Rd intersection2020Moody Rd - Page Mill Rd intersectionMary Stutz Path2020Mary Stutz PathHidden Villa Adobe Creek headwaters2020Hidden Villa Adobe Creek headwatersDeer Creek source crossing2020Deer Creek source crossingDeer Creek branch2020Deer Creek branchBerkshire pigs at a farm in Los Altos Hills, CA - 22020Berkshire pigs at a farm in Los Altos Hills, CA - 2Berkshire pigs at a farm in Los Altos Hills, CA - 2 (cropped)2020Berkshire pigs at a farm in Los Altos Hills, CA - 2 (…Berkshire pigs at a farm in Los Altos Hills, CA - 12020Berkshire pigs at a farm in Los Altos Hills, CA - 1Neary Quarry pano2019Neary Quarry panoNeary Quarry lake from southwest rim2019Neary Quarry lake from southwest rimHale Creek source canyon above Neary Quarry2019Hale Creek source canyon above Neary QuarryHale Creek outflow of Neary Quarry2019Hale Creek outflow of Neary QuarryLOS-ALTOS-HILLS-12018LOS-ALTOS-HILLS-1Losaltoshills2017LosaltoshillsRainbow Over School Library2016Rainbow Over School LibrarySchoolhouse2015SchoolhouseWestwind Community Barn2014Westwind Community BarnPoppies - panoramio (3)2014Poppies - panoramio (3)Wildcat Loop Trail2013Wildcat Loop TrailEntrance to the Immaculate Heart Monastery of the Poor Clares2011Entrance to the Immaculate Heart Monastery of the Poo…Dawn Gathering2011Dawn GatheringPurisima Creek above O'Keefe Lane with water & alders Aug. 29, 20102010Purisima Creek above O'Keefe Lane with water & alders…Packard Pathway Oct. 20102010Packard Pathway Oct. 2010Santa Clara VTA bus2005Santa Clara VTA busLosaltoshillsview2005LosaltoshillsviewLos Altos Hills path2005Los Altos Hills pathLos Altos Hills entrance sign2005Los Altos Hills entrance signFreespiritartcar2005Freespiritartcar
On the National Register

2 historic places in Los Altos Hills

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
each building in a district counts
first listed
1977
Willard Griffin House and Carriage House
Willard Griffin House and Carriage HouseLantarnam Hall
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

19th Century Medieval Revival1
Craftsman1
Modern1
Shingle Style1
Tudor Revival1
Willard Griffin House and Carriage House19th Century Medieval Revival
All 2 listings
Lantarnam HallBuilding · listed 1985

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Los Altos Hills, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00019601980200020208,489

Grew from 3,412 people in 1960 to 8,489 in 2020.

7 censuses, 1960–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Los Altos Hills’ Wikipedia page.

Famous people

4 famous people were born in Los Altos Hills

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Max ThieriotAmerican actor · b. 1988
D
Daniel RosenbaumAmerican basketball player · b. 1997
C
Cal RossiAmerican football player · b. 1924
S
Simon RosenbaumAmerican-Israeli baseball player · b. 1993
Places that used to be

Places now gone

Gone or out of use
Near Quarrymine

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Los Altos1 historic placeC−LoyolaIts storyC−Palo Alto19 historic placesB+

Questions about Los Altos Hills’ history

What year was Los Altos Hills founded?

The Los Altos Hills post office opened in 1960, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Los Altos Hills rank for history?

Los Altos Hills is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #409 of 847 in California. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Los Altos Hills?

Two places: the Willard Griffin House and Carriage House (listed 1977) and the Lantarnam Hall (1985).

How old are the homes in Los Altos Hills?

2% of Los Altos Hills’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.6 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1977.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (30), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.