Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto (/ˌpæloʊ ˈæltoʊ/; Spanish for 'tall stick') is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto.
Palo Alto, California | |
|---|---|
| City of Palo Alto | |
 Flag  Seal | |
| Etymology: from Spanish palo alto 'tall stick' | |
 Location in Santa Clara County and California | |
  Palo Alto, California Location in the United States | |
| Coordinates: 37°25′45″N 122°8′17″W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Santa Clara |
| Incorporated | April 23, 1894[1] |
| Named for | El Palo Alto |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council-Manager |
| • Body | City council members:[2]
|
| • Mayor | Lydia Kou |
| Area | |
| • Total | 26.00 sq mi (67.35 km2) |
| • Land | 24.10 sq mi (62.41 km2) |
| • Water | 1.91 sq mi (4.94 km2) 7.38% |
| Elevation | 30 ft (9 m) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 68,572 |
| • Density | 2,871.52/sq mi (1,047.35/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−8 (Pacific) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−7 (PDT) |
| ZIP Codes | 94301, 94303, 94304, 94306 |
| Area code | 650 |
| FIPS code | 06-55282 |
| GNIS feature IDs | 277572, 2411362 |
| Website | www |
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Originally formed as the township of Mayfield in 1855, the city was established in 1894 by the American industrialist Leland Stanford when he founded Stanford University in memory of his son, Leland Stanford Jr. Palo Alto includes portions of Stanford University and borders East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. At the 2020 census, the population was 68,572.[5] Palo Alto is one of the most expensive cities in the United States in which to live,[6][7] and its residents are among the most educated in the country. However, it also has a youth suicide rate four times higher than the national average, often attributed to academic pressure.[8]
As one of the principal cities of Silicon Valley, Palo Alto is home to the headquarters of multiple tech companies, including HP, Space Systems/Loral, VMware, PARC, and Houzz. Palo Alto has also served as headquarters or the founding location of several other tech companies, including Apple,[9] Google,[10] Facebook, Logitech,[11] Tesla,[12] Intuit, IDEO, Pinterest, and PayPal; Ford Motor Company and Lockheed Martin each additionally maintain major research and technology facilities within Palo Alto.[13][14]