Sited on the Napa River, which provided a steamship link to San Francisco, the town of Napa was uniquely placed to benefit when the Napa Valley’s winer­ies first got into gear during the mid-19thC. Despite lending its name to the country’s major wine-producing area, Napa has few wineries of its own but does boast a plethora of extravagant Victorian architecture in its historic riverside quarter.

Many of the old buildings have been restored and converted into the antiques shops, quaint restaurants and bed-and-breakfast inns which service the town’s plentiful wine tourists, but the commercial trappings should not deter you from a few hours’ stroll. While here, drop into the distinctive Goodman Library Building, 1219 1st Street, where the Napa County Historical Society (http://www.napahistory.org) mounts displays and exhibitions on the origins and growth of the town.