Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-13
GIVE HISTORY OF
CALIFORNIA SEAL
Prove General Robert S. Garnett
of Confederate Army Or
iginaI Designer

Comparatively few people know any
thing of the great seal of this state.
and fewer still know anything of its
gallant and educated designer and his
fate as a confederate soldier.
"A short time ago an attorney of the
Los Angeles bar was delving in the
debates in the California constitution
al convention of 1S49, as published by
the official reporter, J. Ross Browne,
and was convinced that Gen. Robert
S. Garnett, who served as adjutant
general under Gen. Robert E. Lee in
Virginia, and was subsequently pro-
NOTED to brigadier general and killed
at the battle OF Rich mountain in July,
1861, deserves the distinction of haV-
ing been the original designer of the
great seal of this state.
1t will be remembered that Lieut..
Garnett, who graduated at West Point,
served with distinction in the Mexican
war and was successfully breveted
captain and major, and after the war
served on the Pacific coast, and later
as commandant at the Military acad-
envy at West Point. Gen, Riley of the
United States army was assigned to
the department and became eX-oti1cio
governor of California and called the
convention which framed the consti-
tuition.
SUMBIT ONE DESIGN
A committee was appointed by the
convention to receive and submit de-
signs of a seal for the new state. Only
one design was submitted, and that
one in the name of Caleb Lyon, or Ly-
ons, the name appearing in both forms.
The committee thought it peculiarly
appropriate and recommended it's
adoption. The explanation accom-
panying the seal is as follows:
Around the bend of the ring are
represented thirty-one stars, being the
number of states of which the Union
will consist upon the admission of Cal
ifornia. The foreground figure repre-
sents the Goddess Minerva, having
sprung full grown from the brain Of
Jupiter. She is introduced as a type
of the political birth of the state of
California without having gone
through the probation of a territory.
At her feet crouches a grizzly bear
feeding upon the clusters from grape
vine, emblematic of the peculiar char
acteristics of the country. A miner is
engaged with his rocker and bowl at
his side, illustrating the golden wealth
of the Sacramento, upon whose waters
is seen shipping, typical of CONNER
cial greatness; and the snoW-clad
peaks of the Sierra Nevadas make up
L = W
Greek motto, Eureka CI have found },
applying either to the principle in
volved in the admission of the state
or the success of the miner at work.
RECOMMEND CHANGES
Subsequently a member of the con-
Ventior moved that the figures of the
gold digger and the bear be stricken
out and bags Of gold and bales of mer-
chandise put in. Another member
moved that the bear be taken out, or
if permitted to remain that it be rep
resented as made fast by a lasso in
the hands of a vaquero, but both
amendments were voted down. Later
the words "The Great Seal of the state
of California were added to the de-
sign; and the original design having
been mislaid, member Capt. H. w.
Halleck, then of Gen. Riley's staff and
the acting secretary of state, and who
subsequently became well known as
one Of the chief military officers OF
the United States government in the
civil war;, stated that the gentleman
by whom it was designed requested
| that it should be found, if possible,
and handed to the chairman of the
convention. 1t was then stated that
the seal was not the production of Mr..
Lyon and that Mr.. Lyon did not claim
it as such, but the original design was
given to Mr.. Lyon by a gentleman
who did not wish his name to be made
public, though expressing a desire in
q confidential letter to Mr.. Lyon that
he (Mr. Lyon might be known as the
author of the design. In a note at
the bottom of page 467 of the debates
the name of the designer is given as
Maj. Garnett.
PROVE GARNETT AUTHOR
Becoming interested in the matter,
and suspecting that Mai. Garnett was
the game as Gen. Robert S. Garnett,
the investigation was pursued by ex-
amining Hittelrs History of California,
and on page 77S of volume 2 of that
work it was found that the name OF
Mai. Garnett is Robert S. Garnett.
Under all the circumstances, there can
be no doubt that Gen. Garnett was
the original designer of the seal, and
deserves the credit for the same. al