Teddy Bear History

President Teddy's bear

Back in 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt went on a hunting trip in Mississippi. As reported by the Washington Post, the president and his hunting party tracked and lassoed a strong, black bear and roped it to a tree. The president was called away to attend something else, later returning to find the great bear tired and exhausted. He then refused to shoot the worn-out bear because he thought it to be unsportsmanlike.

The next day (November 16), a Washington Post editorial cartoonist drew the incident as part of a front-page cartoon montage. The cartoonist drew Roosevelt with his gun before him, the butt resting on the ground, and his back to the bear, illustrating his refusal to shoot the bear. The caption read, "Drawing the Line in Mississippi," which inferred the hunting trip to a political dispute at the time.

The birth of teddy bears

The cartoon was an instantly hit, drawing attention from all across the country. In Brooklyn, a shopkeeper named Morris Michtom displayed a few toy bears in the window of his novelty shop, which had been made by his wife, Rose. They were made from plush stuffed excelsior, featuring black shoe button eyes.

Michtom soon realized the bears were going to be a instant classic, and quickly asked and received permission from the president to call them "Teddy's Bears."

Needless to say, the cuddly, stuffed bears were a success. As demand for the bears later increased, Michtom relocated his business to a loft and renamed his shop to the "Ideal Novelty and Toy Corporation."

An American tradition

From the mid-1970s and on, Teddy Bear popularity has rapidly increased, and more and more adults began collecting them. For years, the most people were content with the modern-designed bears, but as the unique history of the Teddy Bear became more well-known, some people began to searching out older bears with traditional designs.

When manufacturers began realizing the interest in old-styled bears, they started aiming their new products for adult toy collectors rather than kids.

To this day, the unique collector's market continues to flourish, many manufacturers designing special "limited edition" bears for each season. And during the centenary of the Teddy Bear in 2002 and 2003, many companies have introduced special designs to mark the occasion.

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