Teddy Bear

Mississippi State Toy

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Teddy bear

"My Teddy Bear" photo by André Nordbø (AndyNor) on Flickr (noncommercial use permitted with attribution / share alike).

Teddy Bear

Mississippi designated the teddy bear as the official state toy in 2002. President Theodore Roosevelt went to the Mississippi Delta to hunt black bear in 1902, where he refused to shoot an injured bear.

A political cartoon poked fun at the president over this incident. The owner of a New York City toy store saw the cartoon and asked the president's permission to use the name "Teddy's bears" on a small stuffed bear cub toy (and Teddy Roosevelt consented). "Teddy's bears" soon became just "Teddy bears" and all stuffed bear toys are now called teddy bears.

Mississippi

Images

An original "Teddy Bear" from 1903 at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History; photo by Tim Evanson on Flickr (use permitted with attribution / share alike).

Teddy bear at Smithsonian Museum

Videos

The Legend of the Teddy Bear

The History of Theodore [Teddy] Roosevelt - A Short Story