The City of Alamosa is a Colorado municipalities#Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Alamosa County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 8,682 in 2005. The city is the commercial center of the San Luis Valley in south-central Colorado.

Alamosa was established in May 1878 by the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad and quickly became an important rail center. The railroad had an extensive construction, repair and shipping facility in Alamosa for many years and headquartered its remaining narrow gauge service here with trackage reaching many...

The City of Alamosa is a Colorado municipalities#Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Alamosa County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 8,682 in 2005. The city is the commercial center of the San Luis Valley in south-central Colorado.

Alamosa was established in May 1878 by the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad and quickly became an important rail center. The railroad had an extensive construction, repair and shipping facility in Alamosa for many years and headquartered its remaining narrow gauge service here with trackage reaching many points throughout southwest Colorado and northern New Mexico. Alamosa is now a notable tourist town with many nearby attractions including the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve. The town hosts a Sunshine Summerfest on the Rio Festival which occurs the first weekend in June. The city takes its name from the Alamosa River. The name'Alamosa'means'shaded with cottonwoods'in Spanish language. >http://books.google.com/books/pdf/The_Origin_of_Certain_Place_Names_in_the.pdfid=BqwPAAAAIAAJ-output=pdf-sig=3IVIg6u-evPGlrv4j1uDL7rQ09c}}

Facilities
Alamosa is the shopping center for the San Luis Valley and boasts a WalMart Supercenter and two supermarkets, Safeway Inc. and King Soopers - City Market. There are a number of fast food restaurants, two medical clinics, and a regional hospital, San Luis Valley Regional Medical Center.

Adams State College is located in Alamosa. ASC is a four year, state supported college founded in 1921 and offering degrees in several fields including business and education. ASC's track team is internationally recognized.

Geography
Alamosa is located at (37.468835, -105.873686), at the junction of U.S. Routes U.S. Highway 160 (Colorado) and U.S. Highway 285 (Colorado). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.0 square miles (10.3 km²).