Alta, California

This article is about the California place named Alta. For the historical region containing present-day California prior to the Mexican-American War, see Alta California.

Not to be confused with Alto, California.

Alta, California
Census-designated place
Alta, California Location with the United States
Coordinates: 39°12′24″N 120°48′41″W
Country	United States
State	California
County	Placer
Area [1]
• Total	2.39 sq mi (6.19 km^2)
• Land	2.38 sq mi (6.17 km^2)
• Water	0.01 sq mi (0.02 km^2)  0.28%
Elevation [2]	3,730 ft (1,140 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	615
• Density	257.97/sq mi (99.62/km^2)
Time zone	UTC-8 (Pacific (PST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-7 (PDT)
ZIP Code	95701
Area code	530
FIPS code	06-01276
GNIS feature ID	2628704[2]

Alta (Spanish for "Upper") is a small unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Placer County, California, United States, about 30 miles (48 km) northeast of Auburn. The village is located off Interstate 80 and along the historical First transcontinental railroad. The ZIP code is 95701 and the area code 530. One of the few buildings other than private residences is the Alta-Dutch Flat Grammar School serving kindergarten through eighth grade students. The high school that serves Alta is named Colfax High School. Colfax High School is 11 miles southwest in the incorporated town of Colfax. The population of Alta was 615 at the 2020 census.

A historical California place once named Alta was located in San Diego County^[3] near the present-day La Mesa–El Cajon boundary. This historical place was along the San Diego and Arizona Eastern Railway, now the San Diego Trolley Orange Line^{[broken anchor]}, at its Murray Drive undercrossing in La Mesa.^{[citation needed]} The community was named after the Spanish word meaning "upper" or "high".^[4]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 2.4 square miles (6.2 km²), 99.72% of it land, and 0.28% of it water.

Climate

Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Csb) according to the Köppen climate classification system. Summers are generally warm with cool nights, while winters are moderately cold and extremely snowy, despite no month having an average low temperature below freezing.

Climate data for Blue Canyon, California (Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1943–present
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °F (°C)	76 (24)	73 (23)	72 (22)	82 (28)	88 (31)	92 (33)	95 (35)	97 (36)	96 (36)	88 (31)	78 (26)	75 (24)	97 (36)
Mean maximum °F (°C)	63.1 (17.3)	60.7 (15.9)	63.1 (17.3)	71.4 (21.9)	76.3 (24.6)	85.2 (29.6)	87.3 (30.7)	86.6 (30.3)	85.3 (29.6)	76.5 (24.7)	69.5 (20.8)	61.1 (16.2)	89.5 (31.9)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C)	46.5 (8.1)	45.0 (7.2)	48.2 (9.0)	52.0 (11.1)	60.6 (15.9)	69.8 (21.0)	77.8 (25.4)	77.4 (25.2)	72.9 (22.7)	62.9 (17.2)	51.2 (10.7)	44.8 (7.1)	59.1 (15.1)
Daily mean °F (°C)	40.4 (4.7)	39.0 (3.9)	41.5 (5.3)	44.8 (7.1)	53.1 (11.7)	62.1 (16.7)	70.2 (21.2)	69.8 (21.0)	65.1 (18.4)	55.5 (13.1)	45.1 (7.3)	39.2 (4.0)	52.2 (11.2)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C)	34.4 (1.3)	33.1 (0.6)	34.7 (1.5)	37.5 (3.1)	45.6 (7.6)	54.4 (12.4)	62.7 (17.1)	62.1 (16.7)	57.2 (14.0)	48.1 (8.9)	39.0 (3.9)	33.6 (0.9)	45.2 (7.3)
Mean minimum °F (°C)	21.6 (−5.8)	19.9 (−6.7)	23.0 (−5.0)	24.9 (−3.9)	31.6 (−0.2)	38.5 (3.6)	53.9 (12.2)	52.9 (11.6)	41.2 (5.1)	33.0 (0.6)	25.8 (−3.4)	20.3 (−6.5)	16.5 (−8.6)
Record low °F (°C)	5 (−15)	6 (−14)	9 (−13)	17 (−8)	21 (−6)	28 (−2)	36 (2)	35 (2)	27 (−3)	17 (−8)	13 (−11)	3 (−16)	3 (−16)
Average precipitation inches (mm)	9.87 (251)	10.56 (268)	9.40 (239)	4.76 (121)	3.71 (94)	1.20 (30)	0.09 (2.3)	0.28 (7.1)	1.03 (26)	3.87 (98)	8.39 (213)	11.46 (291)	64.62 (1,640.4)
Average snowfall inches (cm)	48.1 (122)	43.5 (110)	49.8 (126)	25.0 (64)	7.5 (19)	0.6 (1.5)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.4 (1.0)	2.7 (6.9)	24.0 (61)	38.8 (99)	240.3 (610)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in)	11.5	11.8	11.6	10.5	6.0	2.6	0.6	1.1	2.8	6.1	10.5	14.4	89.5
Source 1: NOAA (mean maxima and minima 2006–2020)[5][6]
Source 2: WRCC (snowfall 1940–2012)[7]

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
2020	615		—
U.S. Decennial Census[8] 1850–1870[9][10] 1880-1890[11] 1900[12] 1910[13] 1920[14] 1930[15] 1940[16] 1950[17] 1960[18] 1970[19] 1980[20] 1990[21] 2000[22] 2010[23]

The 2010 United States Census^[24] reported that Alta had a population of 610. The population density was 255.2 inhabitants per square mile (98.5/km²). The racial makeup of Alta was 592 (97.0%) White, 1 (0.2%) African American, 3 (0.5%) Native American, 5 (0.8%) Asian, 1 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 2 (0.3%) from other races, and 6 (1.0%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 23 persons (3.8%).

The Census reported that 594 people (97.4% of the population) lived in households, 16 (2.6%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 242 households, out of which 70 (28.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 141 (58.3%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 17 (7.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 14 (5.8%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 18 (7.4%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 1 (0.4%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 56 households (23.1%) were made up of individuals, and 19 (7.9%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45. There were 172 families (71.1% of all households); the average family size was 2.89.

The population was spread out, with 127 people (20.8%) under the age of 18, 37 people (6.1%) aged 18 to 24, 122 people (20.0%) aged 25 to 44, 237 people (38.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 87 people (14.3%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 112.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.5 males.

There were 314 housing units at an average density of 131.4 per square mile (50.7/km²), of which 193 (79.8%) were owner-occupied, and 49 (20.2%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5%; the rental vacancy rate was 7.5%. 469 people (76.9% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 125 people (20.5%) lived in rental housing units.

References

1. "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
2. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Alta, California
3. "Alta (historical), San Diego County, California". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved December 2, 2007.
4. William Bright; Erwin Gustav Gudde (November 30, 1998). 1500 California place names: their origin and meaning. University of California Press. p. 14. ISBN 978-0-520-21271-8. Retrieved January 20, 2012.
5. "NOWData – NOAA Online Weather Data". NOAA. Retrieved June 2, 2022.
6. "U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved September 7, 2022.
7. "BLUE CANYON AP, CA (040897)". Western Regional Climate Center. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
8. "Decennial Census by Decade". United States Census Bureau.
9. "1870 Census of Population - Population of Civil Divisions less than Counties - California - Almeda County to Sutter County" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
10. "1870 Census of Population - Population of Civil Divisions less than Counties - California - Tehama County to Yuba County" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
11. "1890 Census of Population - Population of California by Minor Civil Divisions" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
12. "1900 Census of Population - Population of California by Counties and Minor Civil Divisions" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
13. "1910 Census of Population - Supplement for California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
14. "1920 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
15. "1930 Census of Population - Number and Distribution of Inhabitants - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
16. "1940 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
17. "1950 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
18. "1960 Census of Population - General population Characteristics - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
19. "1970 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
20. "1980 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
21. "1990 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
22. "2000 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
23. "2010 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
24. "2010 Census Interactive Population Search: CA - Alta CDP". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 12, 2014.

External links

• Sierra Nevada Virtual Museum: Alta