[6] The Washoe people, a Great Basin tribe, inhabited the Sierra Nevada on the California–Nevada boundary, with the Hung A Lel Ti band populating the Diamond Valley including what would become Alpine County.

Though gold spurred the infrastructural development of Alpine County, the Comstock Lode found near Virginia City, Nevada and the subsequent silver boom was what triggered Alpine County's growth, even attracting gold miners from neighboring Nevada.

[12] Markleeville, established by Jacob Markley in 1861 as a 160-acre claim encompassing a bridge and toll station, became the new county seat in 1875.

[7][12] Following the devastating collapse of the silver industry, the population began quickly declining until the 1950s, falling to an all-time low of 241 in 1930.

[10] During this time, its small economy limited the county to serving primarily as a trading center for the local farming and lumber industries, as well as fishing and hunting during the 1930s.

[16][17] American Indian and Alaska Native The 2010 United States census reported that Alpine County had a population of 1,175.

[34] Warren Harding and Herbert Hoover gained over ninety percent of the county's vote.

In November 2008, Alpine was one of just three counties in California's interior in which voters rejected Proposition 8, the ballot initiative to amend the California Constitution to reject the legal extension of the title of marriage to same-sex couples.

[35] Alpine County is in California's 3rd congressional district, represented by Republican Kevin Kiley.

The project, which eventually became known as Stonewall Nation, was subsequently surreptitiously used by fellow gay activists Morris Kight and Don Kilhefner as an agitation and propaganda tool with no serious plans to bring the idea to fruition.

[42] In the late 1970s, the Posse Comitatus organization attempted to take over Alpine County by settling there and fielding candidates in local elections.

The group fielded a candidate for sheriff and registered fictitious voters using post office boxes and vacant lots as their addresses.

Six people were prosecuted for voter fraud, the false registrations were thrown out, and the incumbent sheriff was re-elected.

The airport consists of a simple airstrip with an apron for small light aircraft to park.