Alton is a city in Sioux County,

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

, United States, along the Floyd River. The population was 1,248 at the 2020 census.

History

Alton was originally called East Orange, and under the latter name was laid out in 1875 when the railroad was extended to that point. East Orange was renamed Alton in 1882. Alton was incorporated as a city in 1883.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2020, there were 1,248 people, 477 households, and 338 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was 656.1 inhabitants per square mile (253.3/km²). There were 526 housing units at an average density of 276.5 per square mile (106.8/km²). The

racial Race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 16th century, when it was used to refer to groups of va ...

makeup of the city was 88.9%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 1.9% Black or African American, 0.8% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.4%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 2.7% from other races and 4.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino persons of any race comprised 6.5% of the population. Of the 477 households, 32.9% of which had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 3.6% were cohabitating couples, 15.9% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present and 17.6% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present. 29.1% of all households were non-families. 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals, 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years old or older. The median age in the city was 37.0 years. 29.8% of the residents were under the age of 20; 4.9% were between the ages of 20 and 24; 25.7% were from 25 and 44; 24.0% were from 45 and 64; and 15.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 50.9% male and 49.1% female.

2010 census

As of the

of 2010, there were 1,216 people, 478 households, and 338 families living in the city. The

was . There were 493 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.9%

, 0.7%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.3% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 1.6% from other races, and 0.8% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 4.7% of the population. There were 478 households, of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.6% were

living together, 4.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 2.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 29.3% were non-families. 24.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.07. The median age in the city was 36.6 years. 27.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.2% were from 25 to 44; 28.3% were from 45 to 64; and 13.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.5% male and 50.5% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,095 people, 439 households, and 297 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 466 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 99.54%

, 0.09% Native American, 0.09% from other races, and 0.27% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 1.10% of the population. There were 439 households, out of which 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.3% were

living together, 4.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.3% were non-families. 30.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.14. In the city, the population was spread out, with 27.4% under the age of 18, 10.5% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.7 males. The median income for a household in the city was $39,911, and the median income for a family was $47,143. Males had a median income of $30,500 versus $19,570 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $16,663. About 4.0% of families and 4.2% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 2.4% of those under age 18 and 11.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

MOC-Floyd Valley Community School District is the local school district. The district formed on July 1, 1994 with the merger of the Maurice-Orange City and Floyd Valley districts. Alton houses the district's middle school while elementary and high schools are in Orange City. Spalding Catholic School, which serves elementary grades, is located in a single campus in Alton. It was previously a

K-8 school K8 or K-8 may refer to: * K-8 (Kansas highway), two highways in Kansas, one in northern Kansas, one in southern Kansas * K-8 school, a type of school that includes kindergarten and grades one through eight * K8 telephone box, designed by Bruce M ...

and had multiple campuses, with middle school in Granville, but the Granville campus closed in 2017, and middle school students are now attending Gehlen Catholic School in LeMars. The associated Spalding Catholic High closed in 2013 with students merged into

Gehlen Catholic High School Gehlen Catholic School is a PreK-12 Roman Catholic school located in LeMars, Iowa. Gehlen's athletic teams are known as the Jays. They compete in the War Eagle Conference with eight other teams from northwest Iowa. Their main rival is the other R ...

Notable people

* James T. Klein, member of the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

Robert Schuller Robert Harold Schuller (September 16, 1926 – April 2, 2015) was an American Christian televangelist, pastor, motivational speaker, and author. Over five decades, Schuller pastored his church in Garden Grove, California starting in 1955. The ...

, pastor of the

Crystal Cathedral Christ Cathedral (Latin: ''Cathedralis Christi''; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Catedral de Cristo''; Vietnamese language, Vietnamese: ''Nhà Thờ Chính Tòa Chúa Kitô''), formerly the Crystal Cathedral, is an American church building in Ga ...

, was born and raised a few miles outside of Alton.Penner, James, 'Goliath: The Life of Robert Schuller,' (1992), pg. 119

References

External links

Alton, Iowa
Portal style website, Government, Business, Recreation, and more {{authority control Cities in Iowa Cities in Sioux County, Iowa