A PIECE OF HISTORY COMES TO LIFE…

The Yolo County Archives recently finished a project that has taken years to complete. A replica of the original Yolo County flag is now hanging in the Administration building (625 Court Street, Woodland), across from the Board of Supervisors chambers. The flag was presented to the Board in a small ceremony at their meeting on Sept 13, 2016. An additional copy was... presented to Herb Chandler’s family because he was the Yolo County Agriculture Commissioner until 1983 and he kept the original safe until now. Also during the ceremony the original flag was presented to the Archives for preservation.

The flag was originally designed and created by Sue Handley while she was secretary to the Yolo County Agriculture Commissioner, Charles Hardy, from 1938 to 1941. Mr. Hardy received a request that Yolo County display a flag at the California State Fair – only one county in California had an Official flag, at that time. The blue stripe signifies the climate and the golden stripe represents the productive soil. The female figure is Ceres, the Roman Goddess of Agriculture.

The flag will be preserved, in the Archives, by using an acid-free tube and synthetic fabric designed to protect items from moisture, mold, dust, and light. The ends of the tube will be suspended by a cradle on each end to ensure that no creases are created from the flag laying directly on a shelf.