Costco to Host Book Signing for Belmont

FOSTER CITY, Calif. - May 23, 2016 - PRLog -- Costco to Host Book Signing for Belmont

Local author, Cynthia Karpa McCarthy, will be available to sign copies of book

In this book, images of days gone past highlight the history of Belmont. Located midway between San Francisco and San José, Belmont is where an Italian count reconstructed his villa transported from Italy, where a silver king created "the White House of the West" and where the Warlocks, a fledgling 1960s rock band, honed the sound they would make famous under another name, the Grateful Dead.

Author Cynthia Karpa McCarthy takes readers back in the history to when the Spanish explorers called Belmont's vales "la Cañada del Diablo," or "the Devil's Canyon," either after the locally famous winds or because the native Ohlone believed the canyon to be inhabited by spirits. She also shares the story of how due to Belmont's historic advantage of being on the bay side of the shortest route to the Pacific coast, the area was a major area for easy access to other types of spirits during Prohibition, fueling a minor red-light district across the tracks on Old County Road.

From this early history she chronicles the development of the area up until modern day. Images show the how Belmont's wooded hills and hiking trails draw residents from neighboring towns and also make it a prime location for sanitariums and prep schools.  By highlighting the history of this unique area, the book hopes to preserve Belmont's history for future generations. McCarthy states, "I hope my book adds to knowledge and interest in the history of Belmont and generates interest and increases membership in our local historical society."

About the Author:

A former newspaper reporter, Cynthia Karpa McCarthy is a librarian at the University of San Francisco. Married to a Belmonter who grew up in one of the town's historic houses, she teamed up with the Belmont Historical Society and several dedicated preservationists to corral images of their beloved Belmont in this book.

Join the author for a signing:

Where:  Costco

1001 Metro Center Blvd.

Foster City, CA 94404

When: Friday, June 3rd, 2016; 11:00 am - 1:00 pm

Available at area bookstores, independent retailers, and online retailers, or through Arcadia Publishing at (888)-313-2665 or online (https://www.arcadiapublishing.com/Products/9781467131353).

The combination of Arcadia Publishing & The History Press creates the largest and most comprehensive publisher of local and regional content in the USA. By empowering local history and culture enthusiasts to write local stories for local audiences, we create exceptional books that are relevant on a local and personal level, enrich lives, and bring readers closer - to their community, their neighbors, and their past. Have we done a book on your town? Visit www.arcadiapublishing.com