California’s first "bear flag" was designed by the cousin of this First Lady.
Dolley Payne Todd Madison
Mary Todd Lincoln
Julia Dent Grant
Lucretia Randolph Garfield
Mary Lincoln’s cousin William Todd lived in California when it declared independence from Mexico. Using red and brown paint, blackberry juice, and a cotton sheet, he created a flag depicting a grizzly bear to symbolize strength, a lone star to signify Texas ? which had already seceded from Mexico – and the words California Republic.