California State Flag  CA
The 31st state, admitted 1850

The first flag of California CA was hastily created by a group of American settlers who revolted against Mexican control in California.  After capturing the town of Sonoma, they tore down the Mexican flag and replaced it with one they constructed from odds and ends of cloth and materials.  Legend tells that the white field and red stripe were made from women's petticoats.  William Todd, cousin of Mary Todd Lincoln, drew a single red star, the words "California Republic" and a sketch of a grizzly bear, that the rebels met as they fought the Mexican army.  It was also a symbol of the settlers determination to gain independence.  That original California state flag was kept in San Francisco until it was  destroyed in an earthquake.  The California design has remained basically the same throughout the years. California State Flag Adopted:  1911