Every July 10th is observed as Teddy Bear Picnic Day. As strange as it sounds, this day encourages people to take their Teddy Bears out for a picnic. What do these stuffed animals eat? Well, we’re going to go out on a limb and say that they probably don’t eat anything.

That means people are free to pack whatever goodies they would ordinarily pack for a picnic for themselves. This can include hot dogs and hamburgers, sandwiches, potato salad, coleslaw, BBQ, baked beans, or just about any other delicious food. Foods that people can enjoy while they’re squeezing their Teddy Bears tight. Sounds like a fun day, doesn’t it?

The History of Teddy Bear Picnic Day

Around the turn of the 20th century, U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt went on a hunting trip to Mississippi. His intention was to hunt whatever game they could find, but unfortunately, they couldn’t find any game.

This is when the hosts of the hunting party decided to tie a black bear to a tree for him to shoot. However, this didn’t sit well with Roosevelt. He felt that it was unsportsmanlike, and he refused to dispatch the bear. Word got out about this incident, and a political cartoon was created of the event for publication in the Washington Post.

The cartoon showed the President standing next to a bear and refusing to shoot the small, sad-looking bear. The cartoon became extremely popular and captured the attention of Morris Michtom. He was a candy store owner in Brooklyn who was inspired to create a stuffed bear in honor of the President sparing the bear’s life.

Michtom called his bear a Teddy Bear, and it was an immediate success. It was so popular that he founded the Ideal Toy Company to manufacture it. It wasn’t long after the Teddy Bear hit the market that competitors sprang up to distribute their version of the Teddy Bear.

Teddy Bears have been enjoyed for over a hundred years now, and it doesn’t look like their popularity is going to end anytime soon. In 1932, a children’s songwriter named Jimmy Kennedy created a song called “The Teddy Bear’s Picnic.”

According to Internet lore, the holiday Teddy Bear Picnic Day took inspiration from this song, but we can’t find any evidence that supports that claim, so this holiday still remains a mystery to us; at least for now.

Observing Teddy Bear Picnic Day

Anyone and everyone who wants to observe this holiday should pack their favorite lunch and their Teddy Bear and head out into nature. Sure, it might turn a few heads, but we’re sure it’s also going to be a lot of fun. Once people have set up their Teddy Bear picnic, they can then take a picture of it and post it to social media using the hashtag #TeddyBearPicnicDay.