Editing Napa County, California (section)

===Early 19th century===
Francis Castro and Father Jose Altimura were the first Europeans to explore the Napa Valley, in 1823.<ref name="AutoZC-5"/> When the first white settlers arrived in the early 1830s, there were six tribes in the valley speaking different dialects and they were often at war with each other. The Mayacomos tribe lived in the area where [[Calistoga, California|Calistoga]] was founded. The Callajomans were in the area near where the town of St. Helena now stands. Further south, the Kymus dwelt in the middle part of the valley. The Napa and Ulcus tribes occupied part of the area where the City of [[Napa, California|Napa]] now exists while the Soscol tribe occupied the portion that now makes up the southern end of the valley. Many of the native peoples died during a smallpox epidemic in 1838. Settlers also killed several over claims of cattle theft.

During the era between 1836 and 1846, when California was a province of independent [[Mexico]], the following 13 [[Ranchos of California|ranchos]] were granted in Napa County:<ref name="AutoZC-6"/>

{{Div col|colwidth=22em}}
*[[Rancho Carne Humana|Carne Humana]]
*[[Rancho Catacula|Catacula]]
*[[Rancho Caymus|Caymus]]
*[[Rancho Chimiles|Chimiles]]
*[[Rancho Entre Napa|Entre Napa]]
*[[Rancho Huichica|Huichica]]
*[[Rancho La Jota|La Jota]]
*[[Rancho Las Putas|Las Putas]]
*[[Rancho Locoallomi|Locoallomi]]
*[[Rancho Mallacomes|Mallacomes]]
*[[Rancho Napa|Napa]]
*[[Rancho Tulucay|Tulucay]]
*[[Rancho Yajome|Yajome]]
{{div col end}}

[[George C. Yount]] was an early settler in Napa County and is believed to be the first [[English-speaking|Anglo-Saxon]] resident in the county. In 1836 Yount obtained the Mexican grant Rancho Caymus where he built what is said to be the first log house in California. Soon afterward, he built a sawmill and grain mill, and was the first person to plant a vineyard in the county. Following Yount's death in 1865 at age 71, the town of [[Yountville, California|Yountville]] was named in his honor.

Following his marriage to [[Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo|General Vallejo]]’s niece Maria Guadalupe Soberanes, [[Edward Turner Bale]] became a citizen of Mexico and was granted Rancho Carne Humana in the northern end of the valley. Bale completed building the [[Bale Grist Mill State Historic Park|Bale Grist Mill]] a few miles north of [[St. Helena, California|St. Helena]] in 1846. Colonel [[Joseph Chiles|Joseph B. Chiles]] a guide for one of the earliest immigrant trains to California, was granted Rancho Catacula in 1844.

The Town of Napa was founded on Rancho Entre Napa by [[Nathan Coombs]] in 1847.

Following the event of the [[Mexican–American War]], [[California Republic|Bear Flag Revolt]] in 1846 and the [[Mexican Cession]] in 1848, settlers were granted deeds from the original ranchos during the 1850s through 1870s. To this day, a number of streets and landmarks around the valley reflect the names of these ranchos and original grantees.