Flag of Cardston

Flags of Cardston

A proposal has been brought to Town Council to update the Town flag. During their September Committee meeting, Council was presented with a proposal to update the artwork of the existing flag design to something more modern and suitable for a flag.

It was also discussed whether or not Council would entertain flying the newly created heraldic flag as the official flag of Cardston. The heraldic flag was part of the Grant of Armorial Bearings, which was granted to the Town as an honour from the Canadian Crown on August 15, 2019, and will be flown in Council Chambers, as well as used by Council in government and ceremonial settings.

In the 133 years since Cardston was first founded, many flags have been flown in the Town as part of the municipalities identity. The current Town flag has been in use for almost 30 years. 

Town Council wants to know what the public's opinion is on the matter of changing the official Town flag once again, and is conducting a poll to gauge the public's feelings on the matter. 

Current Flag

The current flag of Cardston has been in use since the Remington Carriage Museum was established in Cardston. It is a depiction of the Town logo on a white field (flag background). When the Carriage Museum was established, the Town logo was updated to include a carriage and two horses, representing the Museum and the heritage of horse drawn carriages in Cardston. Examples of flags that Cardston flew prior to the introduction of the Horse and carriage can been seen in the photo gallery at the bottom of this page. This flag has been in use since sometime in the early to mid 1990's. 

Heraldic Flag of Cardston

Armorial Bearings

On August 15, 2019, Cardston received a grant of armorial bearings from the Canadian Heraldic Authority, which is a part of the Canadian Honours system, recognizing Cardston’s achievements, celebrating it’s history, and contributions made to Canada. The heraldic emblems are all unique to Cardston, and are hugely symbolic of those achievements and contributions. (click here to learn more about Cardston's Coat of Arms)

The Heraldic Flag of Cardston is, "A banner of the Arms". It utilizes the same design elements as Cardston's Coat of arms:

The gold background symbolizes the town's agricultural success in the arid Southern Alberta landscape, an area previously deemed unfit for farming. The carriage wheel refers to the early Cardston settlers' travel to the Lee Creek Valley by wagon train, and also to the town's Remington Carriage Museum. The blue band represents the water of Lee Creek used in irrigation canals constructed by the early Cardston settlers, and the white rectangles (know traditionally as 'billets' in heraldry) represent the communities serviced by the irrigation canals. As well, the rectangles evoke playing cards, and thus represent the family of Cardston's Founder, and leader of the first settlers in Cardston, Charles Ora Card, and make a canting reference to the town’s name, "Card's-Town".

Updated Flag Design

This proposed design was made taking the elements in the existing flag design, and applying some of the recommendations of the North American Vexillological Association (Vexillology is the academic study of flags) for designing a good municipal flag. It was presented to council as a potential update to the current flag by modernizing some of the artwork, simplifying the colour scheme, removing any wording so it can been seen from both sides without letters being reversed, and fitting the design to the borders of the flag. 

Using the poll below, please share your opinion with Council on the matter. Do feel that the Town flag is due for an update? Would you like to see the Town fly the new heraldic flag of Cardston as the official Town flag? Are you in favour of perhaps flying both in Town, either side by side or for distinct purposes? Or are you in favour of leaving the Town flag as is currently is?

You may use the comment section at the bottom for any questions or comments.