Calistoga (
Wappo
The Wappo (endonym: ''Micewal'') are an indigenous people of northern California. Their traditional homelands are in Napa Valley, the south shore of Clear Lake, Alexander Valley, and Russian River valley. They are distantly related to the Yuki ...
: ''Nilektsonoma'') is a city in
Napa County
Napa County () is a county north of San Pablo Bay located in the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 138,019. The county seat is the City of Napa. Napa County was one of the original co ...
, in the
Wine Country
Wine Country is the region of California, in the northern San Francisco Bay Area, known worldwide as a premier wine-growing region. The region is famed for its wineries, its cuisine, Michelin star restaurants, boutique hotels, luxury resorts, ...
of
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. Located in the
North Bay region of the
Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...
, the city had a population of 5,228 as of the
2020 census.
Calistoga was founded in 1868 when the
California Pacific Railroad
The California Pacific Railroad Company (abbreviated Cal. P. R. R. or Cal-P) was incorporated in 1865 at San Francisco, California as the California Pacific ''Rail Road'' Company. It was renamed the California Pacific Railroad ''Extension'' Compan ...
was built, establishing the town as a tourist destination for its
Calistoga Hot Springs. Today, Calistoga continues as a popular tourist destination in Wine Country, owing to its vineyards and historic landmarks.
History
![219-MOUNT ST HELENA](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/219-MOUNT_ST_HELENA.jpg)
The Upper Napa Valley was once the home of a significant population of Indigenous People, called the
Wappo
The Wappo (endonym: ''Micewal'') are an indigenous people of northern California. Their traditional homelands are in Napa Valley, the south shore of Clear Lake, Alexander Valley, and Russian River valley. They are distantly related to the Yuki ...
during the Spanish colonial era of the late 18th century. With abundant
oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...
trees providing
acorn
The acorn, or oaknut, is the nut of the oaks and their close relatives (genera ''Quercus'' and '' Lithocarpus'', in the family Fagaceae). It usually contains one seed (occasionally
two seeds), enclosed in a tough, leathery shell, and borne ...
s as a food staple and the natural hot springs as a healing ground Calistoga (
Wappo
The Wappo (endonym: ''Micewal'') are an indigenous people of northern California. Their traditional homelands are in Napa Valley, the south shore of Clear Lake, Alexander Valley, and Russian River valley. They are distantly related to the Yuki ...
: ''Nilektsonoma'', meaning "Chicken Hawk Place") was the site of several villages. Following
Mexican Independence
The Mexican War of Independence ( es, Guerra de Independencia de México, links=no, 16 September 1810 – 27 September 1821) was an armed conflict and political process resulting in Mexico's independence from Spain. It was not a single, co ...
, mission properties were secularized and disposed of by the Mexican government with much of the Napa Valley being partitioned into large ranchos in the 1830s and 1840s. The first
Anglo
Anglo is a prefix indicating a relation to, or descent from, the Angles, England, English culture, the English people or the English language, such as in the term '' Anglosphere''. It is often used alone, somewhat loosely, to refer to people ...
settlers began arriving in the 1840s, with several taking up lands in the Calistoga area.
Samuel Brannan
Samuel Brannan (March 2, 1819 – May 5, 1889) was an American settler, businessman, journalist, and prominent Mormon who founded the '' California Star'', the first newspaper in San Francisco, California. He is considered the first to publici ...
was the leader of a Mormon settlement expedition on the ship Brooklyn landing in Yerba Buena (San Francisco) in 1846. He published San Francisco's first English language newspaper, the California Star. Following the discovery of
gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...
in
Coloma, Brannan became California's first millionaire. Fascinated by Calistoga's natural hot springs, Brannan purchased more than with the intent to develop a spa reminiscent of
Saratoga Springs
Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over 2 ...
in
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
.
The name of Calistoga was given to the place in the fall of 1867, by Mr. Brannan, who has been reported and quoted as saying that the name came from a slip of the tongue that transformed "Saritoga of California" into "Calistoga of Sarifornia". The place had already been previously called ''Hot Springs'' by the few Americans, and ''Agua Caliente'' by the Spaniards and Indians.
![Calistoga (c](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/Calistoga_%28c._1890%29.jpg)
Brannan's Hot Springs Resort surrounding Mt Lincoln with the Spa/Hotel located at what is now Indian Springs Resort and Brannan Cottage Inn, opened to California's rich and famous in 1862. The
Napa Valley Railroad Company's track was completed to Calistoga in 1868, providing an easier connection for
ferry passengers traveling from
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
, as well as transforming Calistoga into a transportation hub for the upper Napa Valley and a gateway to
Lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
and
Sonoma Counties.
![Calistoga_Roman_Plunge](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Calistoga_Roman_Plunge.jpg)
Calistoga's economy was based on mining (
silver
Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...
and
mercury
Mercury commonly refers to:
* Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun
* Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg
* Mercury (mythology), a Roman god
Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to:
Companies
* Merc ...
) agriculture (grapes, prunes and walnuts) and tourism (the hot springs). One of the early visitors was
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...
, who wrote the ''
Silverado Squatters
''The Silverado Squatters'' (1883) is a travel memoir by Robert Louis Stevenson of his two-month honeymoon trip with Fanny Vandegrift (and her son Lloyd Osbourne) to Napa Valley, California, in 1880.
Background
In July 1879, Stevenson receiv ...
'' while honeymooning with his wife
Fanny Vandegrift
Frances "Fanny" Matilda Van de Grift Osbourne Stevenson (10 March 1840 – 18 February 1914) was an American magazine writer. She became a supporter and later the wife of Robert Louis Stevenson, and the mother of Isobel Osbourne, Samuel Lloyd O ...
at a cabin near Silverado Mine on
Mount Saint Helena
Mount Saint Helena (Wappo: Kanamota, "Human Mountain") is a peak in the Mayacamas Mountains with flanks in Napa, Sonoma, and Lake counties of California. Composed of uplifted 2.4-million-year-old volcanic rocks from the Clear Lake Volcanic Fiel ...
.
In 1920, Giuseppe Musante, a soda fountain and candy store owner in Calistoga, was drilling for a cold water well at the Railway Exchange when he tapped into a hot water source. In 1924 he set up a bottling line and began selling Calistoga Sparkling Mineral Water. The company became a major player in the bottled water business after Elwood Sprenger bought the small bottling plant in 1970 known today as
Calistoga Water Company Calistoga may refer to:
* Calistoga, California
* Calistoga AVA, an American Viticultural Area that partly overlaps the town of Calistoga
* Calistoga Water Company, bottled water brand sourced in Calistoga, California
* Calistoga, code name for ...
.
Scenes from the movie Hot Rod 1979 were filmed in and around Calistoga. Scenes from the
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
movie ''
Bedtime Stories'' starring
Adam Sandler
Adam Richard Sandler (born September 9, 1966) is an American comedian, actor, screenwriter, producer and singer. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1990 to 1995, before going on to star in numerous Hollywood films, those of wh ...
were filmed in Calistoga in June 2008.
Calistoga was named a Distinctive Destination by the
National Trust for Historic Preservation
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 by ...
in 2001.
In 2017, the
Tubbs Fire
The Tubbs Fire was a wildfire in Northern California during October 2017. At the time, the Tubbs Fire was the most destructive wildfire in California history, burning parts of Napa, Sonoma, and Lake counties, inflicting its greatest losses in ...
, which killed at least 19 people, started off of Highway 128 and Bennett Lane in Calistoga. The fire led to the evacuation of almost the entire population of Calistoga. The 2017 Tubbs Fire took exactly the same path as the 1964 Hanley Fire. In 2020, the
Glass Fire
The Glass Fire was a wildfire in Northern California, that started on September 27, 2020, at 3:48 AM ( PDT) from an undetermined cause and was active for 23 days. It was part of the 2020 California Wildfires and the 2020 Western United States wi ...
forced an evacuation of the city for the second time in four years.
Geography
![Calistoga No](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Calistoga_No._3_%287927073534%29.jpg)
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the city has a total area of , 99.30% of it land and 0.70% of it water.
Climate
![Mount Saint Helena, viewed from Napa Valley](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/Mount_Saint_Helena%2C_viewed_from_Napa_Valley.JPG)
According to
National Weather Service
The National Weather Service (NWS) is an Government agency, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weathe ...
records, Calistoga has cool, wet winters with temperatures dropping to freezing on an average of 35.6 days. Summers are usually very dry, with daytime temperatures regularly reaching 90 °F (32 °C) or higher on an average of 70.8 days, but nights are cool, dropping into the mid-fifties. Average January temperatures range from to . Average July temperatures range from to . The record high temperature of occurred on September 6, 2022. The record low temperature of was recorded on December 11, 1932. Calistoga has a
hot-summer Mediterranean climate
A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...
(Csa) according to the
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
system.
Average annual rainfall is with measurable precipitation falling on an average of 65.7 days each year. The wettest year was 1983 with and the driest year was 2013 with . The most rainfall in one month was in February 1986. The most rainfall in 24 hours was on February 17, 1986. Snow often falls in the nearby mountains during the winter months, but is rare in Calistoga. On January 3, 1974, 3.0 inches of snow fell in the city.
Demographics
2010
![NorCal2018 Gondola Lift Sterling Vineyards Napa Valley DSCF0182](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/NorCal2018_Gondola_Lift_Sterling_Vineyards_Napa_Valley_DSCF0182.jpg)
At the
2010 census Calistoga had a population of 5,155. The population density was . The racial makeup of Calistoga was 3,735 (72.5%) White, 27 (0.5%) African American, 21 (0.4%) Native American, 47 (0.9%) Asian, 10 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 968 (18.8%) from other races, and 347 (6.7%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2,545 persons (49.4%).
The census reported that 5,100 people (98.9% of the population) lived in households, 20 (0.4%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 35 (0.7%) were institutionalized.
There were 2,019 households, 630 (31.2%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 927 (45.9%) were
opposite-sex married couples living together, 189 (9.4%) had a female householder with no husband present, 99 (4.9%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 141 (7.0%)
unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 20 (1.0%)
same-sex married couples or partnerships. 641 households (31.7%) were one person and 332 (16.4%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.53. There were 1,215 families (60.2% of households); the average family size was 3.23.
The age distribution was 1,167 people (22.6%) under the age of 18, 400 people (7.8%) aged 18 to 24, 1,341 people (26.0%) aged 25 to 44, 1,283 people (24.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 964 people (18.7%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 40.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.7 males.
There were 2,319 housing units at an average density of 887.3 per square mile, of the occupied units 1,166 (57.8%) were owner-occupied and 853 (42.2%) were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.4%; the rental vacancy rate was 5.0%. 2,545 people (49.4% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 2,555 people (49.6%) lived in rental housing units.
2000
At the
2000 census there were 5,190 people in 2,042 households, including 1,243 families, in the city. The population density was . There were 2,249 housing units at an average density of .
Of the 2,042 households 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.2% were married couples living together, 8.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.1% were non-families. 31.4% of households were one person and 17.1% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.20.
The age distribution was 23.3% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 19.6% 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.6 males.
The median
income
Income is the consumption and saving opportunity gained by an entity within a specified timeframe, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. Income is difficult to define conceptually and the definition may be different across fields. For ...
for a household in the city was $38,454, and the median family income was $44,375. Males had a median income of $32,344 versus $29,844 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,134. About 5.2% of families and 8.0% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 9.5% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
![Chateau Montelena - 2008-04-14](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/db/Chateau_Montelena_-_2008-04-14.jpg)
Major employers in Calistoga include
Solage
Solage (; or Soulage), possibly Jean , was a French composer, and probably also a poet. He composed the most pieces in the Chantilly Codex, the principal source of music of the ''ars subtilior'', the manneristic compositional school centered on A ...
resort, Calistoga Joint Unified School District, Indian Springs Calistoga resort, and the
Calistoga Spa Hot Springs
Calistoga Spa Hot Springs, formerly known as Calistoga Hot Sulfur Springs is a geothermal spring system and resort located in the upper Napa Valley town of Calistoga, California. The resort has been continuously operated as a hot spring resort ...
. Neighboring vineyards include
Sterling Vineyards
Sterling Vineyards is a winery near Calistoga, California, owned by Treasury Wine Estates. The winery achieved international recognition when its wine won first place in the Ottawa Wine Tasting of 1981.
Description
Visitors to the winery take a ...
.
Tourism
Calistoga is at the north end of the Napa Valley
Calistoga AVA
The Calistoga AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in the northern portion of California's Napa Valley AVA. The appellation is distinguished by its volcanic soil, high temperatures up to during the day, and cool nights during the growing ...
, part of
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
's
Wine Country
Wine Country is the region of California, in the northern San Francisco Bay Area, known worldwide as a premier wine-growing region. The region is famed for its wineries, its cuisine, Michelin star restaurants, boutique hotels, luxury resorts, ...
. There are numerous wineries within a short drive. The city allows visitors to see wine country as it was before freeways and fast food—only two-lane roads lead there, inducing those segments of
Highway 29 and
Highway 128 that pass through Calistoga, and fast food franchises are banned by law.
Calistoga itself is noted for its
hot springs
A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...
spas such as
Calistoga Spa Hot Springs
Calistoga Spa Hot Springs, formerly known as Calistoga Hot Sulfur Springs is a geothermal spring system and resort located in the upper Napa Valley town of Calistoga, California. The resort has been continuously operated as a hot spring resort ...
. A local specialty is immersion in hot volcanic ash, known as a
mud bath
A mud bath is a bath of mud, commonly found in areas where hot spring water can combine with volcanic ash. Mud baths have a long history that dates back thousands of years. Mud baths are conceived as public bathing spaces created in open areas ...
. Nearby attractions include an artificial
geothermal geyser
A geyser (, ) is a spring characterized by an intermittent discharge of water ejected turbulently and accompanied by steam. As a fairly rare phenomenon, the formation of geysers is due to particular hydrogeological conditions that exist only in ...
known as the "Old Faithful of California" or "Little Old Faithful". The geyser erupts from the casing of a well drilled in the late 19th century. According to Dr. John Rinehart in his book ''A Guide to Geyser Gazing'' (1976 p. 49), a man had drilled into the geyser in search for water. He had actually "simply opened up a dead geyser".
Government
![Calistoga City Hall front view (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/Calistoga_City_Hall_front_view_%28cropped%29.JPG)
In the
California State Legislature
The California State Legislature is a bicameral state legislature consisting of a lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members; and an upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members. Both houses of the Legisla ...
, Calistoga is in , and in .
In the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
, Calistoga is in .
The above districts are based on the 2011 Redistricting in California.
Notable people
*
Bob Knepper
Robert Wesley Knepper (born May 25, 1954) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher. From 1976 to 1990, he pitched 15 seasons for the San Francisco Giants and Houston Astros, earning two All-Star appearances as well as the 1981 NL Come ...
, former
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
player, attended Calistoga High School.
*
Tom Seaver
George Thomas Seaver (November 17, 1944 – August 31, 2020), nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "the Franchise", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the New York Mets, Cinc ...
, former
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
player, lived south of Calistoga.
*
Dick Vermeil
Richard Albert Vermeil (; born October 30, 1936) is a former American football coach who served as a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons. He was the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles for seven seasons, the St. Lou ...
, former head coach of the
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...
,
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994.
The arri ...
, &
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division.
The tea ...
, was born in Calistoga.
See also
*
California Historical Landmarks in Napa County
References
External links
*
The Calistoga Chamber of Commerce & Visitors BureauCalistoga Tribune(one of two local newspapers)
The Weekly Calistogan(one of two local newspapers)
Article from ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' 2005-12-28
{{authority control
Cities in Napa County, California
Napa Valley
Incorporated cities and towns in California
Spa towns in California
Populated places established in 1886
1886 establishments in California
Cities in the San Francisco Bay Area