In November, 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt is on a hunting excursion in Mississippi while trying to settle a boundary dispute between that state and Louisiana.
Well aware of the President's love of exotic game, his staff captures a Louisiana black bear for Roosevelt to shoot. Instead of killing the bear, the President set it free.
Editorial cartoonist, Clifford Berrymore, learns of the incident and draws a cartoon for the Washington Post on Nov. 18th called 'Drawing the Line in Mississippi'. It shows Roosevelt refusing to shoot the bear.
Morris Michtom, a candy store proprietor in Brookly, N.Y., sees the cartoon and figures there is money to be made. He and his wife make a stuffed plush toy with movable arms, legs and head and, with the President's permission, christen it the 'teddy bear'. The toy bear becomes an icon of the time and perennial favorite of children throughout the country.