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History · West Alton

West Alton’s post office opened in 1895, and 12% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1927 on and the census since 2000.

1895first post office
0on the National Register
12%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Paul Sableman · CC BY 2.0
Quick answers

How West Alton began

When was West Alton founded?

1895

The West Alton post office opened in 1895, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 573 in 20002020 census: 359131 years
Founding year: the first West Alton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about West Alton’s 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 West Alton are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of West Alton’s homes were built before 1960.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start West Alton’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how West Alton’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How West Alton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of West Alton.

Read it all →

A post office called West Alton has been in operation since 1895. The community was named from its location on the western bank of the Mississippi River opposite Alton, Illinois.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

West Alton, decade by decade

Today3 recent
Audbon Centar at Riverlands2024Audbon Centar at RiverlandsWest Alton, Mo2012West Alton, MoMOMap-doton-West Alton2004MOMap-doton-West Alton
On the map

West Alton on the map, 1927 to 1994

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

West Alton on the 1927 USGS mapWest Alton on the 1935 USGS mapWest Alton on the 1951 USGS mapWest Alton on the 1968 USGS mapWest Alton on the 1974 USGS mapWest Alton on the 1994 USGS map1927Alton 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 West Alton.

People over time

West Alton, census by census

010020030040050060020002020Peak: 573

Between 359 and 573 people in every census since 2000.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on West Alton’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

Famous people close to West Alton

Nobody well known was born in West Alton itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Miles DavisAmerican jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and compos… · b. 1926
Robert WadlowAmerican who was the tallest recorded person in… · b. 1918
Clint WalkerAmerican actor · b. 1927
RicochetAmerican professional wrestler · b. 1988
Don "The Dragon" WilsonAmerican kickboxer · b. 1954
Christina RomerEconomist · b. 1958
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

West Alton’s post office has been open since 1895.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Kic-ka-poo Village
Gone or out of use
Alton Ferry LandinglocaleRed SchoolschoolSmelzer Lake Schoolschool
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside West Alton
BaileyEspedezaImmaculate Conception

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about West Alton’s history

What year was West Alton founded?

The West Alton post office opened in 1895, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (3), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) 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.