The Teddy Bear... some of the first bears created were made in Germany, by Margarete Steiff (appeared in a price list 1883) As early as 1892 Margarete was offering 'soft-filled Bears for small children.' At first these stuffed animals created no interest in America or at the Leipzig Spring Fair in 1903. On the last day of the Leipzig Fair, Hermann Berg, a buyer from the New York ordered 3000 of the little jointed bears.
President Theodor Roosevelt was largely responsible for the success of the Steiff bear in the USA. Known as Teddy to his friends, he was an avid bear hunter and in 1902 while on a four-day hunting trip in Mississippi, he refused to shoot a young bear that had been captured for him.
The teddy craze took hold in America and, from there throughout the world.
Link to The Steiff Teddy Bear History
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Margarete Steiff Bear
Steiff - Knopt Im Ohr
(Button in Ear)

Boyds Bear holding Jaag Panda Bear

Ty's Jumbo Peace Bear
Stands over 3 feet tall!
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