by John Waters Jr. (Author), Sharpsteen Museum (With)
Calistoga is a name unlike that of any other city in America, first uttered by a man who had intended to develop the "beautiful land"--or Tu-la-halusi as the land at the foot of Mount St. Helena was known to the region's native Wappo tribe--into a resort area rivaling that great eastern resort of similar geological character, Saratoga Springs, New York. During a promotional event, the developer, Samuel Brannan, was about to declare that he would make his hot springs resort community the Saratoga of California, when he transposed the names and declared he would make it the Calistoga of Sarafornia--and the town's name was born. The name resonated with locals at the time and has come to represent the pioneer spirit, optimism, and determination of those who would make their way to this secluded region of northern Napa County. Men and women have come in pursuit of their dreams--farming, bottling the local mineral water, and building a community in the spirit of early Calistoga.