The first "Teddy bear" was put on sale on this day in history, Feb. 15, 1903. Created by Morris and Rose Michtom, the bear toy, inspired by the president, was a huge success.

The Teddy Bear Was Once Seen as a Dangerous Influence on ... the cute cub from the cartoons also looked like a marketing ... To mark the bear’s 60th birthday in 1963, the Michtoms ...

By 1908, the bear had become such a popular toy that a Michigan minister warned that replacing dolls with toy bears would destroy the maternal instincts in little girls. In 1963, Benjamin Michtom, at ...