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San Jose, California (U.S.)

Santa Clara County

image by António Martins-Tuválkin, 20 September 2000

Flag Description
City Hall Flag
Former flag

See also:

Santa Clara County
Municipal flags of California (index page)
California
United States of America

Description of the flag

The city flag of San Jose, California. The state seal of approx. half of the flag's height in diameter is placed centrally on a "Spanish triband" (1+2+1) of orange, white and blue (a Dutch connection in California?!), but its inner background is white rather than blue.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 20 September 2000

The City of San Jose, California has had a variety of flags, one of which is shown above. However this is only the most recent variant in a long evolution of flags, most of which were flown, but never officially adopted. The adoption was often ex-officio by the mayor, as in the case of a plain white flag with the city's seal which was used for a number of years in the 1950's and 1960's. A temporary commemorative flag, as in the case of the 1976 bicentennial flag designed by a policeman and intended to be flown for a year, but instead was used for at least a decade because no one told the purchasing department. Or just a variant as ordered by the cities purchasing department, such as the current design, in which the wreath of grapes around the seal has been eliminated.
Jim Ferrigan, 23 November 2002

City Hall Flag

The city of San Jose in Santa Clara County, California, USA, has a flag for the building for city hall. There are four poles outside the building and they fly the US flag, the California flag, the City of San Jose flag and a flag for city hall. It is a white rectangle with what looks like an outline of the building profile and the words "San Jose City Hall" on it.
Picture: www.waymarking.com/gallery/image.aspx?f=1&guid=c25a4cc4-e72e-4b5b-8a2d-d33cb6554c09
San Jose flag flying directions: www.sanjoseca.gov/clerk/cp_manual/CPM_2_1.pdf
Michael P. Smuda, 30 October 2010

I don't think that this flag is "acting" as a building flag, but as a departmental flag. In some cities in USA, the "City Hall" is one of the city departments, consisting of a city clerk, assistant and receptionist.
Valentin Poposki, 31 October 2010

Former flag

image by Rob Raeside, 30 July 2014

The first flag of San José was designed by Clyde Arbuckle, the city historian, who worked with the historic
landmarks commission. The flag has a white field bordered with three stripes, one inside the other. From the outside edge, they are white, gold, and blue, the last two colors being those of California. The city seal, without the lettering around the seal or the cartouche below it, is in the center of the field. Above the seal, SAN JOSÉ, CALIFORNIA runs horizontally; below the seal is FOUNDED 1777, all in large black letters. The flag's proportions are 3 by 4.5. It was officially adopted 2 June 1969.
Ben Cahoon, 30 July 2014