Celebrated on September 9th every year, Teddy Bear Day is a holiday in which people take the time to acknowledge the special link they have with their teddy bears. On this day, teddy bear fans are encouraged to thank their teddy bears for all the comfort, companionship, and good times they have provided. It’s the perfect day for people to remember their favorite childhood friend!

History of The Teddy Bear & Teddy Bear Day

The roots of the teddy bear can be traced back to around the turn of the 20th century. This is when then U.S. President Teddy Roosevelt went on a hunting trip with some of his friends in November of 1902.

During the hunt, Roosevelt’s attendants cornered, clubbed, and tied a black bear to a willow tree after they had chased it down with their hunting hounds. Teddy Roosevelt was then called to the site so that he could shoot the bear and take it home as a trophy.

However, he decided it would be unsportsmanlike to kill the bear himself, so he ordered his assistants to do it to put the animal out of its misery. When the media caught wind of what Roosevelt had done, people became fascinated with the story and started equating the President with black bears.

This effect grew even bigger when the Washington Post published a political satire that showed Roosevelt being disgusted as a handler lassoed a black bear. Upon seeing this cartoon, Morris Michtom decided to create a smaller version of that black bear.

He wanted to get permission to use Teddy Roosevelt’s first name to name this bear “Teddy’s Bear,” so he sent one to the President with a note asking for permission. After getting permission, he began to manufacture the bears, and they became instant successes. From that point on, the Teddy Bear would become an American icon.

While the history of the Teddy Bear is well documented, the history of Teddy Bear Day is not. Today, no one really knows who started Teddy Bear Day. It is believed to have started in 2002 – or around the 100th anniversary of the creation of the Teddy Bear. However, that can neither be confirmed nor denied.

Teddy Bear Day Customs & Celebrations

All you really need to celebrate Teddy Bear Day is your favorite stuffed bear. It doesn’t matter if it is the one you loved as a child or if you bought it last week. Take it out for a trip around town, spend the day watching TV with it, or simply hug it. There is no right or wrong way to celebrate this fun holiday.

However, there are some other ways to spend this holiday. For instance, if you don’t spend much time with your Teddy Bear, then consider cleaning him or her up and donating them to your favorite charity – perhaps a charity devoted to giving toys to needy children, like Toys for Tots, or to a charity that serves another purpose like the Salvation Army or Goodwill.

If you can’t bear to part with Teddy, then you can go to Build-A-Bear, have a teddy made, and then donate it to a needy child. That’s a perfect way to spend Teddy Bear Day. Another fun way to spend Teddy Bear Day is to learn all you can about the life and habitat of bears.

You can read scientific articles, read Wikipedia, or even visit your local zoo and see just how fascinating living bears really are. If that doesn’t please you, then you can always spend some time watching one of the many movies that are dedicated to Teddy Bears or feature bears. These include movies such as Ted, Ted 2, Toy Story 3, or Labyrinth.