About this event
Join Napa Bookmine and the St. Helena Public Library on Thursday, March 25th at 7:00PM PT for virtual author hour with Katharine Van Arsdale to discuss her forthcoming book Angwin and Howell Mountain.
This is a VIRTUAL event and will take place on Zoom. You must RSVP to attend. Email read@napabookmine.com to RSVP.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Just a few miles east of St. Helena, Howell Mountain overlooks the Napa Valley. The mountain's mild Mediterranean climate and extensive forests have drawn people for thousands of years. From the Wappo people to Spanish explorers and Mexican Californios, the region has a rich history. In the 1880s, the mountain was a popular place to establish health resorts like the Rural Health Retreat, which later became St. Helena Hospital. Cornish immigrant Edwin Angwin also opened a resort that hosted visitors such as author Ambrose Bierce. When Angwin retired in 1909, he sold his land to the Seventh-day Adventist Church. That year, Pacific Union College opened on the old resort grounds; the college has been the hub of the tiny town of Angwin ever since. Today, Howell Mountain is one of the most prized wine appellations in the world, and Angwin remains a quiet, rural village in the midst of wine country. It is surrounded by conservation easements and Land Trust of Napa County preserves, making it a unique community in this setting.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Katharine Van Arsdale is the Archivist and Special Collections Librarian at Pacific Union College in Angwin, CA. Before coming to Napa County, Katharine worked for several years as a research librarian in Washington, DC. Using her MA in History and MSLS in Library Science from the Catholic University of America, Katharine especially enjoys researching local history and bringing it to life.