Ted

[barrywom]

Why were teddy bears named after a US president?

[incitatus]

Because he famousl had a stuffed bear presented to him, which stood in the whitehouse. He was a huntin shootin and fishin man, and may well have shot it himself...cant remember.

[Horse]

Hey Incy! Theo refused to shoot bear. He preferred Beaver. Anyway, in 1903 a Russian immigrant called Morris Michton asked President Roosevelt's permission to make and sell a bear named after him. Roosevelt agrees and "Teddy's Bear" is born.

[bluenotes]

As far as I know, the teddy bear was invented by a handicapped old woman in Germany, the brand name is "Steiff", always with a button in the ear. They are still producing, and the teddies aren't cheap. But the old ones, the first series, are really valuable and collected worldwide. The name was permitted to Mr. Michton after hunter Roosevelt refused to shoot an old bear bound to a tree for him, a scene that had been covered by cartoonist Clifford Berryman, who had continued depicting the president with the saved bear.

[Ginbottle]

Roosevelt was invited on a shooting expedition. Before they set off, a bear was tied to a tree; he was told to shoot the bear but Roosevelt took objection to shooting a defenceless bear so this is what was reported in the newspapers.