St. Helena ( ) is a city in Napa County, California, United States. Located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the population was 5,430 at the 2020 census.

St. Helena is a popular tourist destination, owing to its vineyards and culinary scene. The city is the center of St. Helena American Viticultural Area (AVA), which expands of the Napa Valley with over 400 vineyards encompassing of cultivation. St. Helena is the location of The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone and a campus of Napa Valley College.

History

thumb|left|The Taylor, Duckworth, & Company Foundry, built 1884

thumb|left|[[Markham Vineyards, founded 1874]]

St. Helena was first inhabited by a native American group known as the Wappo people. They spoke Yukian and are believed to have first settled in St. Helena as early as 2000 B.C. The Wappo name for the area is Anakotanoma, meaning . The site is recognized as a National Historic Landmark.

The town of St. Helena was founded by Henry Still and Charles Walters, who bought a 126 acre tract of land lying on the west side of Main Street from Maria Ignacio Soberanes Bale in 1854. By 1858 there was a school house and a little Baptist church. Four years later Professor William Brewer of the Whitney party called it a "pretty little village with fifty or more houses . . .nestled among grand old oaks." It officially became a town on March 24, 1876, and by 1886 the population grew to 1,800 inhabitants. Shortly after in 1868, the first railroad was created in St. Helena allowing for shipment of resources such as fruit and mining products. The newly built train tracks also brought in tourists.

Ellen White, co-founder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, had a home called Elmshaven near St. Helena, beginning in 1900. She died there in 1915, and the site is now a National Historic Landmark. Both the Beringer Vineyards and the Charles Krug Winery are California Historical Landmarks.

|source 2 = National Weather Service

</div>

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, St. Helena had a population of 5,430 and a population density of . The median age was 48.0 years. The age distribution was 19.2% under the age of 18, 6.6% from age 18 to 24, 20.2% from age 25 to 44, 27.1% from age 45 to 64, and 26.8% age 65 or older. For every 100 females, there were 87.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.6 males age 18 and over.

There were 2,337 households, of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 46.8% were married-couple households, 5.0% were cohabiting couple households, 14.2% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present, and 34.0% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 32.5% of households were made up of individuals, and 19.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.3.

There were 2,812 housing units at an average density of . Of all housing units, 16.9% were vacant and 83.1% were occupied. Among occupied units, 54.9% were owner-occupied and 45.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.9%, and the rental vacancy rate was 6.8%.

! Race !! Number !! Percent

|-

| White || 3,498 || 64.4%

|-

| Black or African American || 14 || 0.3%

|-

| American Indian and Alaska Native || 61 || 1.1%

|-

| Asian || 94 || 1.7%

|-

| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 6 || 0.1%

|-

| Some other race || 1,031 || 19.0%

|-

| Two or more races || 726 || 13.4%

|-

| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 1,863 || 34.3%

|}

Economy

Major employers in St. Helena include Trinchero Family Estates, Beringer Vineyards, and The Culinary Institute of America. The city is distinct in its regulation against chain restaurants; only one exists in the city - an A&W - established before the legislation was enacted. Saint Helena Elementary School teaches grades three through five, Robert Louis Stevenson Middle School teaches grades six through eight;

  • Siegfried Horn, archaeologist and Biblical scholar
  • William B. Hurlbut, born in St. Helena, raised in NY, professor at Stanford University Medical Center
  • Charles Krug, winemaker
  • Bob Marshall, mayor of San Bruno, California
  • Fritz Maytag, businessman
  • Donald C. McRuer, congressman
  • Peter Newton, winemaker
  • Charles O'Rear, photographer
  • Carl Osburn, naval officer and sports shooter
  • Frank K. Richardson, associate justice of the California Supreme Court
  • Dave Smith, engineer and musician
  • Edwin R. Thiele, missionary, writer and archaeologist
  • Mike Thompson, U.S. Representative for , St. Helena native and lifelong resident
  • Josephine Tychson, the first woman to build and operate a winery in California
  • Owen Wade, State Assemblyman
  • Ellen G. White, author and co-founder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
  • One of Disney's classic movies "Pollyanna" was filmed on Railroad Avenune in Saint Helena in 1960.
  • The Elvis Presley 1961 release, "Wild in the Country", was filmed in a small Saint Helena house now known as a popular inn called The Ink House.
  • "A Walk in the Clouds" (1995) was filmed in northern Saint Helena. The movie depicts a love story involving a daughter of a vineyard owner.
  • "Patch Adams" (1989) starring Robin Williams had a scene filmed at the picturesque cemetery in St. Helena.
  • The "When Death Comes Calling" episode (S6.E2, 2013) of My Ghost Story was filmed at a winery in the city.

See also

  • List of cities and towns in California
  • List of cities and towns in the San Francisco Bay Area
  • Tree City USA

References

  • St. Helena Chamber of Commerce
  • St. Helena Historical Society