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is a city in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about 15 miles north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 34,511 at the 2006 census.
The Alton area was home to Native Americans long before the founding of the modern city. While early historic accounts indicate occupation of this area by the Illiniwek or Illinois Confederacy, earlier native settlement is evidenced by the presence of the famous Piasa bird painted on a cliff face nearby, first seen by Europeans in 1673 by Father Jacques Marquette.