Why were teddy bears invented? Reason leaves TikTokers stunned

Teddy bears are soft toys people have surely played with at some point in their life or probably know that these soft toys exist. But most people aren't aware of how these soft toys were invented. Recently, videos of the story behind the invention of teddies have been doing rounds on the internet.

As soon as social media users started sharing the story behind the invention of teddies and how this soft toy got its name, netizens were left amazed.

The story of the invention of the teddy bear dates back to 1902 when the 26th President of America, Theodore Roosevelt, was invited to Mississippi for hunting. The hunt, however, took a U-turn and gave the world a cute fluffy soft toy.

---

Theodore Roosevelt's refusal to kill a bear led to the invention of teddy bears

26th American President Theodore Roosevelt, known by the nickname of Teddy, was the reason behind these soft toys' creation. With his nickname, it must be clear how this soft toy got its initial name, but the latter part of the name has an interesting story behind it.

According to History.com, President Theodore Roosevelt had a strong personality and an interest in hunting. Owing to that, he was invited to Mississippi on November 14, 1902, to join Andrew Longino, the governor of Mississippi, on a bear hunt.

Everyone hunted the bear except Roosevelt, and witnessing that embarrassed the governor. So, Roosevelt's assistant tied a bear to a willow tree and made sure that the President could hunt him now. However, disgusted by the situation, President Roosevelt refused to kill the bear.

The cartoon that gave the idea to soft toy makers to create teddy bears (Image via Getty)

This incident became the highlight of the President's Mississippi visit. Cartoonist Clifford Berryman learned about the incident through a news article, so he drew a political cartoon that was published in The Washington Post. In the cartoon, it was shown that Roosevelt refused to kill the bear.

Later, this cartoon gave the idea to a stuffed toy maker to make a cute fluffy bear and call it a teddy bear by taking permission from President Roosevelt. Additionally, the soft toy makers started their own company by the name of this.

---

How are social media users reacting after learning about the invention story?

Recently, a trend has been going on TikTok where users are sharing why the now-famous things were created. Now, the creation of teddy bears and the reason behind it is doing the rounds on TikTok.

Several users reacted to the story by saying that TikTok has so much to offer. Here are some reactions:

Social media users' comments on the invention video (Image via TikTok)

Social media users' comments on the invention video (Image via TikTok)

This interesting fact about how teddy bears were created and got their name reminded people of when they got these toys.