The history of Carneros is inextricably linked to that of the nearby mission town of Sonoma. Prior to the establishment in 1823 of a Franciscan mission in Sonoma, the area north of San Francisco was largely unsettled. California was at that time under Mexican jurisdiction and few if any pioneers braved the dangers posed by local Indian tribes, bears and the threat of attack by Russian soldiers camped along the Sonoma coast at Fort Ross and Bodega Bay.
Mission San Francisco Solano at Sonoma was the last of the twenty-one California missions to be built, located at the northern end of the Camino Real (royal highway). Each mission was charged with the task of converting the Indians to Christianity as well as overseeing all land surrounding the mission.
By pushing the northern edge of the frontier as far as Sonoma, the missionaries paved the way for the future development of Sonoma, Napa, and Mendocino counties. By 1832, outposts had been established in Napa, Suisun, Santa Rosa, and Petaluma.
In 1834 the Mexican government moved to secularize all California missions. Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo, Military Commander and Director of Colonization of the Northern Frontier, arrived in Sonoma, along with ten families of would-be settlers, to take charge of the mission, free the Indians and distribute the mission lands. Under Vallejo's jurisdiction, hundreds of thousands of acres of land were freely granted to individuals meeting two criteria: proof of naturalized Mexican citizenship and a willingness to survey and develop the land.
In practice in the land grants were awarded almost exclusively to Vallejo's relatives or friends. The Carneros region lies principally within the original boundaries of four such land grants: Rincon de los Carneros, Entre Napa, Huichica, and Petaluma.
The first two and smaller of these three grants were made in 1836 to Nicholas Higuerra, while the third was awarded in 1841 and 1846 to Jacob P. Leese, a son-in-law of Vallejo. Leese's grant, Huichica, consisted of over 18,000 acres and comprises a large part of the Carneros region. Rincon de los Carneros - the namesake of the Carneros region - was one of the smaller grants, measuring approximately 2,500 acres. The Petaluma grant which forms the western portion of Carneros was granted to Vallejo by his superiors. Many portions of the grants were quickly subdivided and sold for farmland, speeding the process of the settling of Carneros.
How did early settlers find their way to Carneros? Many were initially drawn to the fertile lands and moderate climate of Sonoma. An influx of American, German, French and Irish settlers began in the 1840s. Arriving by boat or overland by wagon trail via the Santa Fe Trail, the Oregon route, or across the Nevada desert, many ventured from the town of Sonoma to Carneros in search of farmland.
Others traveled by horse, wagon or foot through Carneros on the well-traveled Sonoma Highway (known today as Routes 12/121) which connected the Napa and Sonoma Valleys. Many miners also passed through during the gold rush on their way to the Trinity Alps or the Sierra foothills. Throughout the 1850s and 1860s a stage coach traversed Carneros daily on its way from Sacramento to Petaluma.
As the population diversified, discontent with the Mexican government grew. In 1846, a group of American frontiersmen overthrew Vallejo's forces in the famous Bear Flag Revolt. For a brief one month period California existed as a republic until being annexed by the United States.
The relative proximity of San Francisco and ease of transport by water also played a role in the historic development of Carneros. As early as 1850, while hay was still free for the cutting, workers traveled by barge to Carneros where they cut and loaded hay and grain for transport to San Francisco.
Farmers flocked to Carneros to raise sheep and cattle as well as cultivate wine grapes, pears, plums, apples, and apricots. Such was the bounty of the region that wharves along the Napa River and Sonoma Creek as well as railway stations (Schellville and Buchli stations) were built in the late 1800s to accommodate the flow of fruit, milk, grain, cattle and hay to the markets of San Francisco.
Grapes played a prominent role in Carneros agriculture and noted wine historian William Heintz of Sonoma contends that Carneros may in fact be the second oldest vineyard area in northern California. In the late 1830s Jacov Leese planted a small vineyard on the Huichica grant. In the mid-1850s William H. Winter of Indiana purchased 1,200 acres of the Huichica Rancho from Leese and by the early 1870s, had not only one of the largest vineyard holdings in the area, but had also built the first winery in Carneros, Winter Winery.
The Winter Winery was sold in 1881 to James Simonton who changed the name to Talcoa Vineyards. Simonton became the first to experiment scientifically, under the direction of Missouri viticulturist George Husmann, to find Phylloxera-resistant rootstock.
One of the largest Carneros vineyards in the late 1800s was the Stanly Ranch with over 300 acres. Stanly was the first to achieve critical acclaim for Carneros wines when he garnered medals from viticultural fairs sponsored in 1888.
While the wine industry thrived in Carneros in the mid-1800s, it came to a grinding halt by the turn of the century. The combination of phylloxera in the late 1870s and 1880s and Prohibition (1919-1933) virtually destroyed the fledgling industry.
In 1935, following the repeal of Prohibition, John Garetto established the first post-Prohibition winery in Carneros (the present site of Bouchaine Vineyards). Shortly thereafter, Andre Tchelistcheff and Louis M. Martini pioneered the rebirth of Carneros by establishing it as a cool climate viticultural region.
Both Tchelistcheff (then winemaker at Beaulieu Vineyard) and Louis M. Martini first purchased Carneros grapes in the 1930s from the Stanly Ranch, a part of which had miraculously survived the phylloxera infestation. In 1942, Martini purchased 200 acres of the Stanly Ranch and six years later he began Pinot Noir & Chardonnay clonal experimentation. A cutting from these plantings in fact was the source of the Davis Chardonnay clone #108 which is widely planted today throughout California.
The 1960s heralded a new wave of vineyard development begun by Beaulieu Vineyards and growers Rene diRosa of Winery Lake Vineyard, Ira Lee, and the Sangiacomo family.
The ground breaking for Carneros Creek Winery in 1972 signaled a new era of winery development in Carneros that continues today. The '80s were marked by skyrocketing development as hundreds of acres of land were planted to vineyard.
Gone are the bears, elk, and cougar that wandered freely across the wooded hills that greeted the first Carneros settlers. Reminders of times past are to be found though, for those who search. Many a street name or landmark in Carneros carries a rich history indicative of the Mexican heritage, family or place after which it was named.
The name Carneros itself - Spanish for sheep - is a prime example, referring to the many sheep ranches that dotted the hills. Huichica Creek and Carneros Creek are two other names whose origin dates back to pueblo times. Duhig, Dealy, Stanly, Leveroni, and Arnold roads are all named after the families who pioneered them. Cuttings Wharf, Buchli Station, and Bentley Wharf roads take their name from the railway stations or docks from which goods were shipped to San Francisco.
Last but not least, no history of Carneros would be complete without mention of the famed Sonoma Rodeo which took place annually from 1929-1950 in Carneros. A crowd of 5,000 people would gather annually on the windswept fields of the Millerick Ranch (present site of Sonoma Creek Winery), to watch star cowboys from across the west, including brothers Tom and Jack Millerick, compete for top dollar prizes.
