Sacramento's flag, adopted on August 15, 1989, features two shades of blue separated by a wavy line, with two half-ovals – a green one in the upper right, a yellow one in the lower left. At the bottom, the text "CITY OF SACRAMENTO" in Century Gothic typeface.
The two blues represent the two rivers that define Sacramento: the Sacramento River and the American River, whose confluence lies at the heart of the city. It was this strategic riverside position that made Sacramento a commercial hub during the Gold Rush.
Yellow evokes the gold seekers who flooded the region in 1849 after gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill, 30 miles to the northeast.
Sacramento has been California's capital since 1854, but it remains in the shadow of San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego. It is a paradoxically discreet capital for the most populous and economically powerful state in the United States. The flag captures this humble identity: no grandiose seals, no aggressive symbolism. Just rivers, fields, gold. Sacramento works while other cities shine.