Abandoned Record
About Alto
Alto is a ghost town in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, first settled in the early 1900s in what was then part of the Tyndall Mining District, east of Tubac in the Santa Rita Mountains. The town was originally named El Plomo, which is Spanish for "lead", and was changed to Alto, meaning "high", many years later, probably because the mines were located high up on a steep mountainside.
This is a site record: what public sources say about Alto, gathered in one place. We haven't written a full guide yet, so history, current access and photos are still to come. Treat the status as unknown until a guide confirms it.
Map
Where Alto is
Historic maps
10 historic USGS maps cover Alto
Topographic sheets from the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain), oldest first. Older sheets often show the camp, mines and roads while the place was alive. The downloads are large map scans; USGS topoView shows them in the browser.
- 1904 Patagonia sheet, 1:125,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1905 Patagonia sheet, 1:125,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1922 Agus Caliente sheet, 1:62,500 · GeoTIFF download
- 1956 Nogales sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1958 Mount Wrightson sheet, 1:62,500 · GeoTIFF download
- 1958 Nogales sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1959 Nogales sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1981 Patagonia sheet, 1:24,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1994 Fort Huachuca sheet, 1:100,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1996 Patagonia sheet, 1:24,000 · GeoTIFF download
Directions
Getting there
Before you go
- Many ghost town sites are on private land, active mining claims or tribal land. Check land status and ask permission.
- Roads to old townsites are often unmaintained dirt. Map apps may route over closed or impassable tracks.
- Removing artifacts from public land is illegal under federal and most state laws.
Nearby
Other sites near Alto
Straight-line distance to other mapped sites in our Arizona index.
- Salero2.2 mi S · Santa Cruz
- Fort Buchanan10.3 mi E · Santa Cruz
- Tubac10.6 mi W · Santa Cruz
- Calabasas11.6 mi SW · Santa Cruz
- Kentucky Camp12.0 mi NE · Pima
- Greaterville12.8 mi NE · Pima
- Harshaw13.9 mi SE · Santa Cruz
- Mowry16.0 mi SE · Santa Cruz
Sources
Sources
- ghosttowns.com, "Alto": county, roads, climate, best time to visit, remains.
- Wikipedia, "Alto, Arizona": coordinates and summary.
- Wikidata Q19818320.
- USGS 3D Elevation Program, elevation at the coordinates.
- USGS The National Map and Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain).