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California Municipal Symbols, C

Last modified: 2006-08-05 by rick wyatt
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Municipalities listed below have been researched for municipal flags, mainly by searching their websites. Commonly U.S. cities use the city seal on a plain field as the city flag, so we have included information about the city seal where no other flag is known.


See also:


Calexico

The website at www.calexicochamber.ca.gov shows the Calexico logo - a cartoon-like drawing of the U.S. and Mexican Border Control posts, with the respective national flags of each country clearly visible. In the upper left corner of the illustration is a pale yellow sun fimbriated black, with stylized black rays in a pale blue sky (all the colors in this logo are pale pastels). There is a white cloud also fimbriated black; it is partially obscured by the dome of the U.S. Border Patrol post, which is pastel yellow and green also edged in black, and this cloud itself partially obscures the lower left portion of the sun. The roof of the Mexican Border Post is terra cotta in color, and the main structures of both post are white with black trim. The U.S. post has one window quartered green and yellow, while the Mexican post has three windows, divided horizontally lilac and white with a black Union Jack-type pattern in the lilac (upper) portion of each window.
Ron Lahav, 23 July 2004


Calimesa

At www.cityofcalimesa.net the municipal seal is circular in shape. There is a white outer ring fimbriated black; in the upper half of this ring is the word 'CALIMESA' in black Old West style capital letters. The word 'CALIFORNIA' is written in the bottom half, while on each side of the outer ring is the word 'DEC' and the number '1990'. The central image of the seal is a multicolored view of a bucolic local landscape with cactus, quail, fruit tree, golf course, in front of a sunrise behind mountains.
Ron Lahav, 23 July 2004


Calipatria

The website at www.calipatria.com shows the city seal is circular with an ochre and white rope edging. The outer concentric circle is likewise ochre, with the words 'CITY OF CALIPATRIA' in pale green capitals and 'CALIFORNIA' at the bottom. The central image is a stylized black and white drawing of a forest scene, with a black, white, and gray building, presumably City Hall, in the foreground. Directly in front of this structure is a very thin vertical black line, extending from a mounting in front of the center of the building all the way to the top of the central image; this represents a flagpole, and from its peak a S&S is flying.
Ron Lahav, 23 July 2004


Camarillo

The website at www.ci.camarillo.ca.us shows a standard circular seal with the outer ring in black fimbriated gold. At the top of this circle the words 'CITY OF CAMARILLO, CALIFORNIA' are written in gold capitals. At each side of the central image are two small gold dots. The motto of the city, also written in gold capitals, is at the bottom of the outer circle. This motto is a Spanish phrase 'LAS PERSONAS SON LA CIUDAD'. The central image of this seal is quite unique: it depicts a 'Californio,' one of the original Spanish or Mexican settlers of the area. He is wearing a fawn-colored buckskin jacket outlined in black, and in his left hand he is holding a sombrero similarly colored. He is wearing black trousers with a fawn-colored stripe along the outer seam, and he is seated upon an elaborate Mexican saddle with what appear to be four gold tassels on each side. The Californio is mounted on a white horse, which is standing on a green meadow with its upper left hoof raised. The horse is outlined in black, and the harness is likewise indicated by black lines. There are black shadows beneath the horse's hooves. Overhead is a blue sky with white clouds edged black, while in the background are palm trees and green hills.
Ron Lahav, 23 July 2004


Campbell

The website at www.cityofcampbell.com shows a municipal seal consisting of a fruit tree in full leaf in pale olive. In the upper half of an imaginary circle surrounding the tree are the words 'CITY OF CAMPBELL' in large pale olive capitals, with small pale olive dots between the words 'CITY' and 'OF'. The lower half of this imaginary circle has the phrase 'THE ORCHARD CITY' in smaller pale olive capitals, again with small pale olive dots between the words 'THE', 'ORCHARD', and 'CITY.' Flanking the tree are two larger olive circles with dark centers.
Ron Lahav, 23 July 2004


Capitola

The website at www.ci.capitola.ca.us shows no municipal heraldry.
Ron Lahav, 23 July 2004


Carlsbad

The website at www.ci.carlsbad.ca.us/logo.html shows a large image of the seal plus the following text:

"CARLSBAD CITY SEAL"
"The Seal shows the sun, the ocean, a horn of plenty and the bird of paradise as the official city flower. In the center are fasces, a bundle of rods and among them an ax with a projecting blade which, in Roman times, symbolized a badge of authority. The date of incorporation is noted at the bottom." [i.e. Incorporated 1952]
"The center part of the Seal has a white background and is bordered by a black band on which is printed "City of Carlsbad California".
Ned Smith, 28 July 2004

The city clerk stated that the city does not possess a flag.
Ron Lahav, 29 July 2004


Carpinteria

The website at www.carpinteria.ca.us shows no civic heraldry.
Ron Lahav, 28 July 2004


Cathedral City

The website at www.cathedralcity.gov shows a logo in a rectangular shape with a cream colored background and gray and black shading at its top and sides. In the center is a mountain range in brown and gray, with an orange sun rising from between the peaks; there are several pale striations on the solar disk, representing early morning clouds. A palm tree in gray green, with a long vertical trunk and culminating in a bushy crown of the same same color, is visible in the foreground; it rises from a horizontal line also of the same color which is beneath the city name. This name is written in black lower-case lettering, with the tail of the letter 'y' extending beneath this horizontal line.
Ron Lahav, 28 July 2004


Ceres

The website at www.ci.ceres.ca.us shows a circular format seal with the outer ring in gray fimbriated black. At the top, in black block letters, are the words 'CITY OF CERES', with small black five-pointed stars at the lower right and lower left flanks of the central image. The bottom of the outer circle contains the city's motto in smaller black block letters: 'TOGETHER WE ACHIEVE.' The central image depicts a plowed field in alternating shade of pale green in a strip pattern. In the background is a gray mountain range and a blue sky overhead. In the center of the plowed field is a golden cornucopia disgorging its bounty.
Ron Lahav, 28 July 2004


Cerriton

The website at www.ci.cerritos.ca.us shows no civic heraldry.
Ron Lahav, 28 July 2004


Chico

The Chico City Clerk reported that the city seal is attached to the relevant section of the Chico Municipal Statutes at Large and dates from the 1890s, when Chico was first incorporated as a city. The seal features General John C. Bidwell, one of the first settlers and developers of the area around Chico. She also informed me that the seal does not exist in a colored form, but simply as a wafer, steel wire on a steel frame. It is used to impress blank mirrors of itself on either blank paper or on gold adhesive, and in fact she was kind enough to include a blind stamping of the seal on gold.
Ron Lahav, 22 September 2004


Chino

The City Clerk of Chino, California, wrote regarding the flag of the city of Chino. The flag is a white rectangle (exact dimensions not given) with a gold fringe on three sides (not alongside the hoist, I presume). In the center of the flag is the Chino Municipal Seal, an example of which is visible at the Chino municipal web site.
    Although Ms Tanner has been unable to find any info regarding the designer of the seal, the present design featuring a cornucopia has been used since the city was incorporated. The original design showed the cornucopia overflowing with fruit, then in 1922 a Holstein cow was added to the design. Apparently the present design was adopted sometime in the 1950s, but again nobody knows who modified the designs.
    The symbolism of the seal is associated with the rich agricultural productivity of Chino and its environs, with the Holstein cow being added to mark the introduction of dairy farming into the region.
Ron Lahav, 17 August 2004


Chino Hills

The website at www.cityofchino.org shows no civic heraldry.
Ron Lahav, 1 August 2004


Chowchilla

The website at www.ci.chowchilla.ca.us shows a seal. The seal is very unusual, being ovoid in shape. This in turn is placed at the top of a color photo of a local street, which is shaped like a medieval window, being rounded at the top and with a horizontal base. At the sides of the seal itself are three palm trees to the right and two to the left; each tree has curved black trunks and gray-green tops. In the lower third of the ovoid and stretching across its entire width is a golden gateway, with two small openings at each flank and a much larger one at the centre; surmounting each of the smaller openings is a fenestration. Over the central arch the words 'GATEWAY TO PROSPERITY' are written in black block letters in three lines, one word per line. At the top of the ovoid are the words 'A Unique Way of Life' in orange script lettering edged in purple. At the lower part of the ovoid is a bright blue ribbon, with two smaller folds at each side and a larger central fold, on which the words 'CITY OF CHOWCHILLA' are written in black block letters. Beneath the ribbon, the alphanumeric 'EST. 1923' is likewise written in black block lettering.
Ron Lahav, 7 August 2004


Chula Vista

The website at www.ci.chula_vista.ca.us shows the municipal logo, rectangular in shape, and consisting of a beige background with a gray horizontal stripe at the bottom, a tan vertical stripe at the fly, and where the two colors meet at the lower left hand corner of the fly there is an olive gray square. The actual design itself is entirely in olive gray, and consists of a stylized mountain range with a sun rising over it, depicted as a blank, while the sun's rays are again in olive gray. Beneath the mountains are five similarly stylized lines in a wavelike pattern, while underneath the device are the words 'CITY OF' in small olive gray block letters; beneath these small letters are the words 'CHULA VISTA' in larger block letters of the same color.
Ron Lahav, 1 August 2004


Citrus Heights

The website at http://www.ci.citrus-heights.ca.us/images/people/newcouncil.jpg (no longer available) showed a fringed flag charged with the city logo.
Dov Gutterman, 17 October 2002

This web illustration also demonstrates Citrus Heights has a flag.
Valentin Poposki, 23 October 2005


Claremont

The website at www.ci.claremont.ca.usa shows a very unusual logo consisting of a square of ivy colored green, in the center of which is a medieval window frame with two vertical sections at right and left, respectively, a rounded top, and a horizontal base. The frame has a central image of a bare brown multi-branched tree linked both at the base and the limbs to the frame, which is also brown and which is fimbriated brown and edged beige. In the right vertical and extending to the dome are the words 'THE CITY OF' in small beige block letters, while in a similar position at the left is the word 'CLAREMONT', and at the bottom the date 1897 is written on the base.
Ron Lahav, 1 August 2004


Clayton

The website at www.ci.clayton.ca.us shows no municipal heraldry.
Ron Lahav, 1 August 2004


Clearlake

The website at www.clearlake.ca.us shows a seal in a circular format, with a blue outer ring and a wide white outer fimbriation and a narrow golden inner edging. At the bottom of the seal, and extending beyond the outer ring, is a ribbon in three folds, the first and third folds being white with red fimbriation and the center fold, much longer than the other two, is red with the words '20th ANNIVERSARY' in white block letters. The bottom of the outer ring contains the dates '1980-2000' in white block letters. The central image depicts a stylized landscape: A golden sun extends similarly colored rays into a blue sky as it rises between two white clouds over a dark brown range of mountains. In the center is a blue lake, while a small white sailing craft proceeding from right to left occupies the foreground. Three green pine trees arranged 2:1 and edged in gold stand in the foreground on the lake shore.
Ron Lahav, 1 August 2004


Cloverdale

The City Clerk of Cloverdale wrote that the city does not have a separate municipal flag, although she has suggested that the municipal logo should be used as the centerpiece of such a flag. Although it appears only in contrasting shades of gray on the municipal web site, its natural colors are alternating shades of green and brown, and it appears in these colors on the city web site. The logo was originally developed for the local Economic Development Commission, but has proved so popular that it has become the city logo as well. It was designed in either 1995 or 1996 by a Mr. Ed Herman, and became the municipal logo by Resolution of the City Council in 1996. The logo was designed to embody the municipal motto, 'Where the Vineyards Meet the Redwoods.' Cloverdale is located in a deep valley planted with vineyards, while the steep hills which surround the city on all sides are home to the groves of the famous California Giant Redwoods, hence the motto. Cloverdale is the last town in Sonoma County, whereas the hills are in Mendocino County.
Ron Lahav, 9 August 2004


Clovis

The website at www.ci.clovis.ca.us shows a very traditional seal consisting of two outer concentric rings surrounding a central image, with thin black fimbriation separating them as well as the central image, with a ropelike edging encircling the lot. The background color for the entire seal is silver-grey, with all lettering plus the central image in black. At the top of the outermost circle the words 'CITY OF CLOVIS' are written in large block letters, and at the top of the inner circle 'CALIFORNIA USA' is written in miniscule block letters. At the bottom of the outer circle the alphanumeric 'INCORPORATED FEBRUARY 27, 1911' are written in similar large block letters. The central image is that of a cowboy on a bucking bronco; his sombrero has been sent flying.
Ron Lahav, 8 August 2004


Coachella

The website at www.coachella.org shows a circular seal with dark blue edging. A golden sun rises into a blue sky over a snow-capped brown mountain range. Below the mountains is a gray-blue lake with intermittent black lines suggesting stylized waves. The lake shore is also brown; in the right foreground is a date palm with a brown trunk and green top, with several branches of dark purple dates suspended from it. On the actual lake shore itself, in the right foreground, is a bunch of grapes in dark purple with a green stem, while in the left foreground are five golden grapefruit, arranged two above and three below, in green foliage. At the top of the seal, but outside the actual edging, the words 'CITY OF COACHELLA' are written in blue block letters, while at the bottom the word CALIFORNIA' is similarly written; beneath it, in smaller block letters, is the alphanumeric 'INCORPORATED 1946.'
Ron Lahav, 8 August 2004


Coalinga

The website at www.coalinga.com shows a seal of a blue circle, irregularly divided at the center by a jagged white line. The upper half of the central image depicts a mountainous landscape in blue and old gold flanked on either side by what appear to be geometric shapes fimbriated in blue. At the top of the upper half of the central image is a white wedge, set off by blue lines from these geometric shapes. Within this wedge the words 'THE CITY OF' are written in small blue block letters. The lower half of the seal is white, and contains the word 'COALINGA' in large blue Art Deco lettering. Beneath this are three dark blue dots, and below that is a short blue horizontal line with the date '1906' written in a similar color below them.
Ron Lahav, 8 August 2004


Colusa

The website at www.colusacity.com showed a seal in a circular format with a wide blue outer ring, on which the words 'CITY OF COLUSA' are written in large white block letters. The background color of the central image is blue-gray, and this image is quartered by a thin blue saltire. The upper quarter depicts a Native American chief wearing a War Bonnet; the right-hand quarter shows a fruit tree with a dark blue top and standing on a similarly colored patch of ground; the bottom quarter contains a mountain scene with the alphanumeric 'ESTABLISHED___'in small blue block lettering (I am unable to make out the actual year); and finally, the left-hand quarter shows two gulls flying over an agricultural landscape.
Ron Lahav, 8 August 2004


Corcoran

The website at www.cityofcorcoran.com shows a circular seal with a black outer ring fimbriated both externally and internally in gold, with a gold five-pointed star at each flank. At the top of this outer ring are the words 'CITY OF' in gold block letters, with the word 'CORCORAN' written in a similar manner at the bottom. The background color of the central image is blue, and the image itself consists of a cotton boll in white, gold, and green. Beneath the boll the date '1914' is written in black.
Ron Lahav, 11 August 2004


Corning

The website at www.corning.org shows a logo that consists of a map of California in gold, with a bunch of black olives attached to a green stem extending across the middle of the state. The northern part of California shows an agricultural scene, with an orange sun surrounded by a golden nimbus rising over a purple mountain range in the background.
Ron Lahav, 11 August 2004


Corona

The website at www.ci.corona.ca.us shows the "Circle City' municipal seal. It reflects this in its shape, with a blue outer circle containing text "To Cherish Our Past [dot] To Plan Our Future[.]" in white lettering. The background color of the central image is white, and contains an orange attached to a green stem and leaves in the upper part. This orange covers the lower right-hand corner of a golden coronet, which in turn extends to the edge of the outer circle. The word 'CORONA' in large blue italic block letters is written in the middle of the central image, across both the face of the orange and the background, The city motto written in smaller blue block lettering and set off by quotation marks is written beneath 'CORONA', while at the very bottom of the central image are the words in lower-case script 'Incorporated July 13, 1896.'
Ron Lahav, 11 August 2004


Cotati

The website at www.ci.cotati.ca.us shows the municipal logo consisting of a full color profile head of a Native American Chief in full regalia facing [heraldic] right. The head is in a blue circle shading to very pale blue at the bottom. Around this central image is a darker blue circle fimbriated black, while at the top and bottom are two sprigs of green leaves, each containing six leaves.
Ron Lahav, 17 August 2004


Covina

The website at www.covina.com shows a city seal following the standard circular format with two concentric circles fimbriated black around a central image. At the top of the outer circle the words 'CITY OF COVINA' are written in black block letters, with the word 'CALIFORNIA' written in a similar fashion at the bottom. At each side, in black lower case letters, 'are respectively the abbreviation 'Inc.' and the date '1901'. The central image consists of an illustration of an orange in natural color, attached to a twig with green leaves and white blossoms.
Ron Lahav, 7 September 2004


Crescent City

The website at www.crescentcity.org shows a circular format seal. The outer concentric circle is gold with black fimbriation. At top are the words 'CITY OF CRESCENT CITY' in blue block letters, with 'CALIFORNIA' in similar fashion at bottom. At lower right and left flanks respectively are two blue five-pointed stars. Background color of the central image is pale yellow. To the right is a large gold crescent whose points face left and the topmost of which reaches to the top of a very tall stylized redwood divided vertically blue/gold. Behind the tree is a stylized range of dark blue mountains, at the foot of which are three blue wavy lines. At the bottom of the central image# is the date '1854' in small blue numerals.
Ron Lahav, 17 August 2004


Culver City

The Culver City web page reports "On November 12, 1940, Mayor Randall and Members of the City Council adopted ordinance No. 528, which called for the adoption of the official City Flag. The ordinance described the flag as follows: "On a background of white shall appear a blue facsimile of the official seal of the City, and at the upper left-hand corner a red five-point star. Below said seal, in large letters shall appear the name Culver City."
Dov Gutterman, 31 December 2002

The website at www.ci.culver-city.ca.us shows the seal in a circular format, with an outer ring in red fimbriated black, and with 'CITY OF CULVER CITY' in black block letters at top; 'INCORPORATED 1917' similar at bottom. Central image has blue background color with a square shield with a point at the bottom. This shield is quartered, but I am unable to distinguish the contents of each quarter. Across the middle of this shield is a green ribbon containing the city motto, 'The Home of Screenland.'
Ron Lahav, 17 August 2004


Cupertino

The website at www.cupertino.org shows the municipal logo, the casque or helmet of a Conquistador in silver and gray, superimposed upon a dark blue vertical rectangle or oblong. However, the image of this item shown on subsequent pages of the web site shows what appears to be a photograph of such a casque, with is richly engraved and etched.
Ron Lahav, 17 August 2004, 9 September 2004

The morion [helmet] is symbolic of the group of Spanish explorers that came through this area, led by Juan Bautista de Anza. I understand they were not wearing such conquistador helmets at the time, but rather soft caps! Cupertino got its name from one of the men in the exploring party, who was reminded of his home town of Copertino, Italy. A link to the web page that has more detail about the De Anza party can be found here. Cupertino was incorporated in 1955. I'm not sure when the morion (in some form or other) was incorporated into the city seal and/or logo. Problems with the reproduction of the letterhead (people thought the morion looked like a snail or a seashell) plus a desire to modernise led to the most recent revision, which is more streamlined and contemporary.
Kimberly Smith, through Ron Lahav, 11 September 2004


Cypress

The website at www.ci.cypress.ca.us/home_page.htm does not display a complete version of the city seal. However, half of the seal appears on some of the other pages.
Ron Lahav, 10 September 2004

Continued: California Municipal Symbols, D, E