[10] It is the principal city of the Altoona metropolitan area, which includes all of Blair County and was recorded as having a population of 122,823.

[14] Prominent landmarks include the Horseshoe Curve, the Railroaders Memorial Museum, the Juniata Shops of the Altoona Works, the Mishler Theatre, the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, and the Jaffa Shrine Center.

[16] The German Altona, which is today a district of Hamburg, lies on the right bank of the Elbe and is an important railway and manufacturing center.

Supposedly, Hamburg's merchants considered their rival to the west 'all zu nah' ('far too close'), which over time became Altona.

The centrality and convenience of the town's rail transportation brought these two important gatherings to the city during the war.

Many treasures of the city's history disappeared, including the Logan House Hotel and railroad shops.

Houses lost shingles and there was extensive tree damage in the Eldorado and Llyswen sections of town.

Altoona is home to the world's oldest wooden roller coaster, the Leap-The-Dips, located in Lakemont Park.

In December 2024, after a 4 day nationwide manhunt, Luigi Mangione was arrested for allegedly killing Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson at a local McDonald's.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.8 square miles (25.4 km2), all land.

The main sections of Altoona are Downtown Altoona, Center City, Logantown, Fairview, Juniata, Wehnwood, Calvert Hills, 5th Ward, Westmont, Eldorado, East End, Dutch Hill, Pleasant Valley, Hileman Heights, 6th Ward, Mansion Park, Llyswen, Garden Heights, and Highland Park.

Some significant neighborhoods are Little Italy, Gospel Hill, Toy Town, Columbia Park, Knickerbockers, and Curtin.

Some areas within Logan Township, outside the city limits but still considered sections of Altoona, are Lakemont, Greenwood, Bellmeade, Westfall, Newburg, and Red Hill.

Many of the older districts consist of a mix of rowhouses and individual homes, which were a common building style in railroad towns in order to provide for worker and manager housing, respectively.

As is typical of a traditional city layout, the downtown is centrally located and contains significant development in all directions.

This style features high ceilings, resulting in taller buildings than is typical for the number of floors.

Individual homes originally provided housing to managers and executives of the PRR and have structural similarities to Victorian or Edwardian mansions, but built very narrow and tall.

Historically, the sole economic force driving the growth of Altoona into a City was the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR).

While the various local railroad shops still employ over a thousand people, they are no longer the driving economic engine of the area as they once were.

Altoona serves as the corporate home to Sheetz, a rapidly growing convenience store and gasoline chain with over 600 locations in the Northeast.

Retail areas include: As is typical in many Rust Belt cities, the economic downturn of the railroad resulted in the closure of many of the downtown's landmark stores and industries.

However, through recent revitalization efforts, Altoona's downtown maintains a significant level of economic vitality and hosts few office and residential vacancies.

[43] In the early 20th century, the Pennsylvania Railroad constructed a large sports complex at the intersection of Chestnut Avenue and Seventh Street.

Well known baseball players as Babe Ruth and Josh Gibson played at Cricket Field, and the stadium was also the venue for numerous other sporting events, musical competitions, marching units, and activities.

[25] A commercial plaza and the Pennsylvania State Parole & Probation stands today on the site of the former Cricket Field.

Mansion Park has also been the site of a 1992 Pittsburgh Steeler intrasquad scrimmage, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference men's and women's college soccer championships, University of Pittsburgh preseason football practices and the 1995 PIAA Soccer Championships.

[citation needed] Musical events have included the Beach Boys, Up With People, the United States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps, the Penn State Blue Band, the Ohio State Pride of the Buckeyes Band, the University of Notre Dame Band of the Fighting Irish, the University of Illinois Marching Illini and the Indiana University of Pennsylvania Marching Band[citation needed] In early 2010, a new scoreboard featuring a video display board with an improved stadium sound system was erected thanks to the generosity of local sponsors.

In Altoona, helper engines are added to heavy trains to give them extra power up and over Horseshoe Curve west of town.

In 2007, AMTRAN customers suffered a major loss in service due to cuts in state funding.

In May of that year, Governor Rendell visited Altoona to discuss plans intended to rectify this situation.