Wanderlust World Wanderlust World The California Bear Flag—a grizzly bear walking on grass, a red star above, "CALIFORNIA REPUBLIC" below, on a white field with red stripe—is more than a state banner. It's a condensed history lesson and identity statement.
In June 1846, American settlers in Sonoma seized the Mexican garrison, declared the "California Republic," and raised a hastily made flag with a bear (painted by William Todd). It lasted 25 days before US Navy raised the Stars and Stripes. The revolt was a catalyst for US conquest in the Mexican–American War.
Adopted 1911; standardized 1953. The current design is based on the 1846 original (destroyed in 1906 SF earthquake).
The flag flies at every state building, school, and park. It's on license plates, highway signs, merchandise, and protest signs—claimed by movements across the political spectrum. The bear appears on the state quarter, seal, and highway patrol badge.
The California grizzly (Ursus arctos californicus) was hunted to extinction by 1924. The flag honors a beast the state eradicated—a reminder that symbols can outlive their referents, and that "westward progress" had costs.
The Bear Flag endures because it tells a story: rebellion, aspiration, loss, and a place that keeps reinventing itself.