It was in mid-November of 1902 that Governor Andrew Longino invited President Theodore Roosevelt to the grounds of Onward, Mississippi, to join him on a bear hunt. The president accepted, and journeyed deep into the Mississippi woods along with his hosts. Although Roosevelt was a renowned and experienced hunter, he was the only individual in his party who had not spotted a bear after three days. In an effort to thwart embarrassment, his assistants cornered a small black bear, tied it to a willow a tree, then summoned Roosevelt so that he might have a bear to shoot. However, the President refused the opportunity, claiming that it would be unsportsmanlike to kill the captive bear. News of such a display of character then spread across the nation; eventually capturing the attention of a New York entrepreneur who was inspired by the compassion of the President to name two stuffed bears made by his wife “Teddy’s Bears.” The rest is history.