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Nestled between wild and quirky Fairfax to the west and bustling, centrally located San Rafael to the east, perched beneath the rolling hills of the Ross Valley and the majestic slopes of Mt. Tamalpais, San Anselmo is truly a place unto itself.

With a slow-paced small town vibe, well-groomed parks and quaint eateries and boutiques lining its stately downtown streets, it appears at first glance to be a relatively easy-to-peg town. But that sublime exterior belies a rich, colorful history and more than a few hidden corners.

The area that would one day be known as San Anselmo has always been blessed with breathtaking natural beauty. Before the arrival of European settlers, Coast Miwoks inhabited the region. The Miwoks, whose territory stretched as far north as Bodega Bay and covered all of Marin and part of Sonoma, no doubt favored the area because of the creek with its abundance of fish and the rolling oak-covered hills that provided both shade and acorns.

The arrival of the Spanish and the establishment of the missions spelled the end of the Miwoks' era and paved the way for what is now downtown San Anselmo to be included in a vast land grant to wealthy friends of the Mexican government in the mid-1800s.

More than two decades after California was added to the Union, the North Pacific Coast Railroad rolled through and shook things up in the mid-1870s, adding a line that ran from Sausalito to Tomales via San Anselmo, which for a few years appeared on maps simply as Junction. By the 1880s, the town had adopted its less utilitarian moniker, inspired by Juan Bautista Cooper's original Punta de Quintin land grant, which marked the area as Canada del Anselmo.

The arrival of the railroad—-as well as the construction of the San Francisco Theological Seminary in 1892—-predictably brought growth, development and expansion.

The area also served as a popular destination for San Franciscans looking for a sunny creekside getaway during the languid summer months. After the 1906 earthquake, many of the town's summer dwellers elected to become full-time residents.

With this population influx came a heated debate over the notion of incorporation. On one side stood those who wanted to incorporate and thus make the town "dry"; on the other side were folks who felt things were just fine the way they were, including prominent whiskey man Richard Hotaling, owner of Sleepy Hollow Ranch. In the end the town did, of course, elect to incorporate (and temporarily sober up), albeit by a rather narrow 83-79 margin, and in 1907 San Anselmo was officially welcomed into the Marin fold.

Another major boom came with the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge. The iconic span, along with the rise of the automobile, also spelled doom for the railway system that had been the town's lifeblood; the trains quit running for good in 1941 and the last of San Anselmo's old rail buildings was razed in 1963. (Those who believe this change was inevitable and that the cars of today are a vast improvement over the trains of yesteryear should consider this fact: A train schedule from 1913 shows a commute time of just over 20 minutes from San Anselmo to the Sausalito Ferry Building. Try pulling that off on 101 at rush hour.)

Today, trains or no, San Anselmo is among Marin's most popular and beloved burghs. Though it's been hit by a pair of heavy floods in recent years—-in 1982 and again over the New Year's Eve weekend in 2005—-that threatened (or flooded) numerous businesses and caused the streets to turn temporarily into rushing rivers, the town and its inhabitants have shown a remarkably resilient spirit, bouncing back on both occasions to flourish anew. (Residents also showed they're serious about preventing future floods with the recent passage of a special tax that will fund numerous flood mitigation projects.)

In addition to the myriad restaurants and shops that make the town a topnotch Bay Area shopping and dining destination—-some call it the antiques capital of the Northern California—-San Anselmo also boasts a handsome, well-stocked library, several fine schools and some of the county's best parks and outdoor attractions, all set to the backdrop of the still-pristine, meandering creek.

The town holds a number of special events, highlighted by the annual downtown antiques fair. Lovely and secluded Creek Park plays host each year to a number of al fresco Film Night in the Park screenings, another subtle nod to the town's celluloid past. During the summer months, Creek Park is also the site of numerous live music events, including the always-fab Salute to the Beatles.

With high-class commerce juxtaposed against natural beauty, a diverse citizenry composed of artists and professionals of every stripe, a rich history and a boundless future, it's easy to see why San Anselmo shines as one of the brightest jewels in Marin's decidedly ornate crown.

==I For more info about San Anselmo and its colorful past, visit the San Anselmo Historical Museum, located at 110 Tunstead Ave. or check it out online at www.sananselmohistory.org.==

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