Jefferson history · Sources checked October 23, 2026

Why the Jefferson flag has two Xs

The two Xs stand for a double-cross. In 1941, Jefferson campaigners used them to express their resentment toward California and Oregon’s state governments.

A complaint you could put on a flag

The seal places two Xs inside a gold pan. Historian Jeff LaLande traces that symbol to the 1941 campaign and its anger at Sacramento and Salem. The message was about being overlooked by both states. Read the Oregon Historical Quarterly account, pages 27–28.

Roads came before the shirts

The Oregon Encyclopedia describes the movement as a bid for public attention and spending on roads and access to the region’s resources. Port Orford mayor Gilbert Gable and California state senator Randolph Collier helped lead it. The proposed Jefferson would have been the forty-ninth state at the time. It never became a state. Read the Oregon Encyclopedia entry.

That distinction matters. A flag can carry a real grievance without proving that statehood was close. It is worth knowing what happened before turning the story into a slogan.

The story reached beyond the state line

The campaign drew national coverage. The Pulitzer Prizes awarded San Francisco Chronicle reporter Stanton Delaplane the 1942 reporting prize for his articles about the proposed new state. See the Pulitzer record.

The attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, ended that campaign; its supporters turned to the war effort. The name remained in regional use. Source: Oregon Encyclopedia.

What wearing it means here

People bring different views to the Jefferson name. Our shop’s purpose is straightforward: gear for people with a tie to this corner of Oregon and California. Buying a hat does not sign you up for a political organization.

If someone asks about the Xs, you now have a useful place to start. Point them toward the sources, too. The history is worth more than a punch line.