History
Sitting on Highway 29 and formerly known as “Napa Junction,” the City of American Canyon was incorporated on January 1, 1992 and celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2022. American Canyon is infused with a rich history. Three Native American tribes — the Patwin, Coast Miwok, and Wappo — lived in the Napa Valley for thousands of years.
American Canyon has been a main hub dating back to the 1800s. When the Carquinez Bridge was built in 1927, additional people migrated into the area. Mare Island drew even more settlers with its bustling operation through the war years. John “Mickey” Mikolajcik, longtime American Canyon resident who passed away in 2008 and the “Father of American Canyon,” shared the City received its name because it was home to Native Americans, Mexicans and Americans who settled in land areas in the south.
American Canyon’s journey to become a city was a long process, made possible by community efforts from 1950 through 1991. As the population grew and diversified, so did the need for additional services — along with a greater desire to accomplish greater things within the community and increase local offerings. Community efforts finally came to fruition with a meeting on January 1, 1992 where a vote was held to officially incorporate the City and confirm the newly elected City Council.
Over the past three decades, American Canyon has grown to a population of more than 21,000 residents. It is now famous as the place “Where Your Napa Valley Experience Begins”, serving as the San Francisco Bay Area’s entry point to the Napa and Sonoma Valley wineries — areas internationally recognized for producing some of the world’s finest wines.
Today, the City’s mission is to ensure a healthy and sustainable organization, deliver exemplary services that are responsive to community priorities and work toward a shared vision for the future. As Mikolajcik once said, “No one person is the cause of any great development. It is the combination of a lot of people to make things possible.”
Coming Soon
The City is working to document American Canyon’s history from 1992 to present day through interviews with longtime community members. The project’s completion is scheduled for 2024. Please share any photographs or stories you'd like to be incorporated into this project.
American Canyon History: From the Footsteps of Time
Volume 1: 2000 BC through January 1, 1992
