JULY 26, 2026 — The city commission of Oregon City, Oregon, in the United States, has unanimously selected a new city flag design, reports Oregon Public Broadcasting.
The new flag replaces its cluttered 1989 banner with minimalist, geometric symbolism.
Designed with volunteer assistance from the North American Vexillological Association (NAVA), the flag incorporates white, blue, and green fields separated by intersecting white lines. These lines form the stylized silhouette of the 130-foot Oregon City Municipal Elevator, a prominent local landmark built in 1955 that serves as the only vertical public street in North America, while simultaneously echoing the visual structure of regional Indigenous fishing platforms and nearby Willamette Falls.
A green stripe pays tribute to the McLoughlin Promenade, while an adjacent green square symbolizes the public parks and town squares envisioned in the city’s original plat. Surrounding these features, a blue field represents the confluence of the Willamette and Clackamas rivers.
The selection process was initiated in late 2025 following years of lobbying from local business owners and vexillologists who criticized the original design as overly complex and difficult to recognize from a distance.
The 1989 flag featured a dense municipal seal centred on a blue background, depicting a broad array of historical elements including town founder John McLoughlin, an Indigenous woman, a covered wagon, a salmon, a beaver, and a schooner, according to OregonLive.com.
Mayor Denyse McGriff characterized the old design as excessively busy, noting that its detailed seal also contained questionable historical depictions. Consequently, the flag had fallen into disuse and was noticeably absent from official municipal grounds and digital platforms.
To establish a design that strictly adheres to established principles of vexillology, such as maintaining simplicity, using limited colours, and avoiding seals or text, the city conducted public surveys alongside consultation with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde.
While a majority of survey respondents initially expressed a preference for a design emphasizing Willamette Falls, municipal commissioners ultimately opted for the elevator-inspired motif due to its distinctiveness and layered symbolism.
Official adoption remains pending final statutory approval, which requires two readings of the adopting ordinance scheduled for August before the flag can be formally produced and raised over municipal facilities.
Image: City of Oregon City
