The City of Immigrants exhibit explored 100 years of historic immigration into Napa Valley between 1820 and 1920. Over this period of time, the Valley’s population dramatically increased, ushering in new towns, industries, customs and ways of life. People from many ethnicities made Napa Valley their home. Some came to California for land, for gold, for adventure, for a better life. Others fled political unrest, poverty, or persecution in their native countries.
Newly arrived settlers brought their languages, cultural customs, belief systems, skills, and cuisines. As waves of immigrants flocked to the Valley, the diversity could be heard on the streets, tasted in restaurants, and seen in newspaper advertisements. Spanish, English, German, Chinese, Italian, and French could all be heard within a single business block.
The exhibit included artifacts from our collection related to food preparation and restaurants, stonemasons, tradespersons, wine production, merchants, Jewish and Christian religious gatherings, civic organizations, leisure and recreation, festivals, and tourism.
This joint exhibit by the St. Helena and Napa County Historical Societies, which celebrated the contributions of immigrant settlers, was sponsored in part by a grant from the Napa County Arts & Culture Advisory Committee.
Who made it
Kathleen Coelingh managed the project. Mariam Hansen researched the history and vintage photos. Janet Peischel designed the posters and timeline. Nancy Caffo, Helen Nelson, Marilyn Coy and Sandra Price curated the artifacts, and Pam Wieben edited the copy.
Dates and location
City of Immigrants opened at the Heritage Center on March 13, 2024, after a talk by Dr. Stephen Taplin on his family’s history. It was the Heritage Center’s first special exhibit. A companion showing ran at the Napa County Historical Society’s Goodman Library in Napa from October 2023 to March 2024.