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A−History
History · Alton

Alton dates to 1796, and 17% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 82% of U.S. towns · #63 of 126 in New Hampshire. What drives it

5 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 11 buildings. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1887 on, and the census since 1790.

1796founded
5on the National Register
17%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Alton’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Alton began

When was Alton founded?

1796

Alton dates its founding to 1796 (Wikidata). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.

First census: 445 in 17902020 census: 5,894230 years

How historic is Alton?

A−

More historic than 82% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1818.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Alton’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Alton is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #63 of 126 in New Hampshire. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Alton’s overall grade.
Founding era1796, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194016.5% of homes (±5.0) · typical NH town 17.5% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register5 listings, 15 historic buildings, 25.0 per 10,000 residents · typical NH town 9.5 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 82%
NewerOlder
New Hampshire towns of 2,500+ (126)Ahead of 50%

New Hampshire towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical New Hampshire town has 9.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Alton’s 25.0 sits above most of its state (67% of New Hampshire towns have fewer) while its 15 historic buildings outnumber those of 78% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.0 points). Two sources give 1796.

Founding year: Wikidata (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 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 writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Alton, and 9 old place names are still on the map.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1820 and 1950, then grew 4-fold.Mapped building by building3 fire insurance maps, 1887 to 1912, drew every building in Alton.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Alton’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewMt. Major station postcard: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Alton’s post office has been open since 1818. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Alton
1818–today
West Alton
1833–1951
East Alton
1837–1871
Alton Bay
1852–today
18101920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Alton BayBrookhurstEast AltonLoon CoveMount MajorSpring HavenStockbridge CornersWest AltonWoodlands
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Alton
McNealWest Alton

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

People over time

Alton, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0006,500180018501900195020002,058 in 1820Low: 1,189

Lost a third of its people between 1820 and 1950, then grew 4-fold.

24 censuses, 1790–2020.

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

The story

How Alton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Alton.

Read it all →

Originally called "New Durham Gore" because of rocky upland areas, or "gores", the town was settled in 1770, mainly by farmers because the highland areas provided less frost. Merchants then filled the lowlands. Early Alton history recounts stories of the merchants trying to convince the farmers to incorporate. They would succeed on January 15, 1796, when the community was named after Alton, a small market town in Hampshire, England.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Alton, 1796 to 2020

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1796
    FoundingAlton is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1818Post officeThe Alton post office opens
  5. 1823Born hereLorenzo Coffin is born here
  6. 1827Born hereGeorge Franklin Drew is born here
  7. 1833Post officeThe West Alton post office opens
  8. 1837Post officeThe East Alton post office opens
  9. 1871Post officeThe East Alton post office closes
  10. 20th century
  11. 1907In the archiveMt. Major station postcard
  12. 1916In the archiveLoon Cove station 1916 postcard
  13. 1919On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  14. 1951Post officeThe West Alton post office closes
  15. 21st century
  16. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 5,894
By decade

Alton, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s–1910s2 items
Mt. Major station postcard1907–1915Mt. Major station postcardPostcardLoon Cove station 1916 postcardc. 1916Loon Cove station 1916 postcardPostcard
1920s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today9 recent
Yard sale2019Yard saleTown Hall2019Town HallGilman Library2019Gilman LibraryAltonNH TownHall2016AltonNH TownHallAltonNH GilmanLibrary2016AltonNH GilmanLibraryMonument Square2010Monument SquareFirst Freewill Baptist East2010First Freewill Baptist EastFirst Congregational2010First CongregationalAlton and Alton Bay, N.H2008Alton and Alton Bay, N.H
On the map

Alton on the map, 1919 to 1987

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

Alton on the 1919 USGS mapAlton on the 1957 USGS mapAlton on the 1987 USGS map1919Alton 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 Alton.

Every building

Alton, building by building, 1887–1912

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Alton fire insurance map, 1887, sheet 11887Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Mt. Major station postcard
Retake this viewMt. Major station postcard, 1907–1915

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Alton’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

5 historic places in Alton

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

places listed
5
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
15
each building in a district counts
first listed
1978
First Freewill Baptist Church
First Freewill Baptist ChurchAlton Bay Railroad StationMonument Square Historic DistrictFirst Congregational ChurchSecond Free Baptist Church
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival2
Shingle Style1
Romanesque Revival1
Colonial1
Victorian1
Italianate1
First Freewill Baptist ChurchBuilding
Alton Bay Railroad StationShingle Style
Monument Square Historic DistrictGreek Revival
First Congregational ChurchGreek Revival
Second Free Baptist ChurchItalianate

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Alton

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

See all →
George Franklin DrewAmerican politician · b. 1827
L
Lorenzo CoffinAmerican farmer, politician, and campaigner · b. 1823
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Gilford4 historic placesB+Tuftonboro1 historic placeB+New Durham3 historic placesB+Wolfeboro6 historic placesABarnstead1 historic placeBGilmanton5 historic placesA−Farmington2 historic placesB+

Questions about Alton’s history

What year was Alton founded?

In 1796, according to Wikidata. Alton’s post office opened in 1818, and the first U.S. census counted 445 people here in 1790.

How does Alton rank for history?

Alton is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #63 of 126 in New Hampshire. 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 Alton?

5 listings: 4 buildings, among them the First Freewill Baptist Church (listed 1978, the first), and 1 historic district, the Monument Square Historic District, with 11 contributing buildings. 15 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Alton?

17% of Alton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.0 points), against a typical 17% for a New Hampshire town; the median home was built in 1974.

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 (11), Wikidata (3), the National Register of Historic Places (5), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.