A holiday celebrated across the country — although without the pomp of other patriotic days — gets a twist in California.
Flag Day, June 14, is also the anniversary of the Bear Flag Revolt, a ragtag three-week rebellion that declared California an independent republic.
The specifics of the two commemorations:
• The nationwide Flag Day was created in 1916 by President Woodrow Wilson. It’s not an official federal holiday, so you’ll get your mail today. The sitting president generally issues a proclamation each year urging display of the U.S. flag for the entire week. It’s not on the current White House’s proclamation list, but maybe they’re running behind. They did get National Homeownership Month and African-American Music Appreciation Month.
• The Bear Flag Revolt was launched on June 14, 1846, in Sonoma. About 30 settlers and mountain men, encouraged by the ambitious Capt. John C. Frémont, imprisoned retired Mexican Gen. Mariano Vallejo, raised a flag bearing an image of a grizzly bear and declared Alta California free of Mexican rule.
It was not a well-thought-out operation. For one thing, Vallejo actually supported U.S. annexation of California. For another, the rebels were apparently unaware that the United States had a month earlier declared war on Mexico. When Monterey fell to U.S. forces on July 7, the rebellion became moot.
The flag lived on, though, and became the state’s official emblem. Some Californians fly it along with the U.S. flag on the anniversary.