Napa: The Transformation of an American Town

by Lauren Coodley, Carol Kammen (Foreword)

With roots set deep in California history, Napa's story reaches back to the Bear Flag Rebellion and earlier, to the first contact between Spanish explorers and the Wappo Indians. Through the founding of Spanish missions and the grants of ranchos by the Mexican government, Napa flourished under the various cultures that helped it become one of the west coast's most dynamic cities. As it bloomed into one of the most recognizable names on the American landscape, Napa's residents confronted issues of war and peace, of open space and sprawl.

273 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 28, 2004

About the author

Lauren Coodley began her career tutoring students for the GED and teaching night school psychology at the local junior college. She attained tenure the same year her son Nils was born; before that, she worked at least two jobs while raising her daughter Caitlin. She invented and taught classes ranging from overcoming math anxiety to children’s literature.

In l996, she received a second M.A. from Sonoma State University, this time in history. She also received two grants from the California Council for the Humanities and from the Lilly Library to further her research on Upton Sinclair.
The Land of Orange Groves and Jails: Upton Sinclair's California, which she edited, was published as part of the California Legacy series by Santa Clara University and Heyday Books.

Napa: the Transformation of an American Town (Arcadia Publishing) is based on archival photographs and original interviews. She revised the book in 2007 with Paula Amen Schmitt.

California: a Multicultural History in Documents was published by Prentice-Hall in 2008.

If Not to History: Recovering the Stories of Napa’s Women essays by lauren and poems by paula amen Schmitt, was published by the Napa County Historical Society in 2009.

Napa Farming History was published by Arcadia Publishing in 20ll, co-written with Paula Amen Judah.

Upton Sinclair: California Socialist, Celebrity Intellectual was published by University of Nebraska Press, 2013

Napa Valley Chronicles was published by The History Press, 2013.

Reviews

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very 'lite' history - skims the surface in a fairly entertaining way. I appreciated the focus on the town of Napa specifically.

[Brian LePort · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyable. A people's history. Tells the story of the valley without giving much attention to the wine industry, which usually receives all the attention.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has a distinct point of view, that it doesn’t really admit at the outset. That makes in interesting in a fairly unintentional, unexpected way. Really solid though, for all that. Required reading for any Napa-interested.