H. W. Crabb turned Oakville from untamed country to wine country after his 1868 purchase of 240 acres (1.0 km2) close to the Napa River. Crabb established a vineyard and winery naming it To Kalon, which in Greek means "the beautiful." By 1877 Crabb had planted 130 acres (0.5 km2) and was producing 50,000 gallons of wine per year and by 1880, his vineyard had increased to 430 acres (1.7 km2).
In 1903 the U.S. Department of Agriculture established an experimental vineyard station in Oakville. This vineyard known as "Oakville Station" is operated by the University of California, Davis. Formally declared a Napa appellation in 1993 there are currently 24 wineries and over 5,000 acres (20 km2) of vineyard located within the boundary of the Oakville AVA. The Robert Mondavi Winery is located between Oakville and Rutherford, California (though its corporate headquarters are in nearby St. Helena). To Kalon was part of Mondavi's original inventory when it was established in 1965. Another Mondavi venture in Oakville is Opus One Winery. Heitz Wine Cellars' Martha's Vineyard is also located within the Oakville appellation.
Modern day tourists traveling on State Route 29 often include a stop at Oakville Grocery, one of the area's few non-winery business, in order to purchase picnic supplies. The Napa Valley Wine Train runs through Oakville on the same route that the original steam train ran on in the 19th century.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 1.4 square miles (3.5 km2), all of it land. Historically, Oakville has been the location of a lode of quicksilver.[5]
The Census reported that 71 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.
There were 27 households, out of which 10 (37.0%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 13 (48.1%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 3 (11.1%) had a female householder with no husband present, 2 (7.4%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 2 (7.4%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 0 (0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 7 households (25.9%) were made up of individuals, and 3 (11.1%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63. There were 18 families (66.7% of all households); the average family size was 3.28.
The population was spread out, with 20 people (28.2%) under the age of 18, 9 people (12.7%) aged 18 to 24, 15 people (21.1%) aged 25 to 44, 18 people (25.4%) aged 45 to 64, and 9 people (12.7%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.0 males.
There were 44 housing units at an average density of 32.4 per square mile (12.5/km2), of which 9 (33.3%) were owner-occupied, and 18 (66.7%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0%; the rental vacancy rate was 18.2%. 16 people (22.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 55 people (77.5%) lived in rental housing units.
Government
On the Napa County Board of Supervisors Oakville is in District 3 and is represented by Diane Dillon.[7]
