The Modesto Arch is a centennial slogan arch at the intersection of 9th and I Streets that was initially built to welcome automobile drivers to Modesto. Built-in 1912 by the Modesto Businessmen’s Association, the arch bears the slogan and city motto, “Water, Wealth, Contentment, Health,” which is brightly illuminated by nearly 700 incandescent light bulbs. The arch was originally held up by two flagpoles on each of its columns, but they were removed due to rot and replaced with two Mediterranean cypress trees that now stand behind the columns and create an illusion of the original flagpoles' height and location.

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