Remember the Winnie-the-Pooh stories by A.A. Milne? The first volume of those delightful stories was published in 1926.
From this recent article in the Daily Mail comes this 100-year-old photo of the bear cub Winnipeg, the real Winnie-the-Pooh:
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| During WW1, Winnipeg became an unofficial mascot of Lieutenant Colebourn's regiment, the 2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade, as they trained on the Salisbury Plain. |
The real Christopher Robin, author A.A. Milne's son, named his childhood teddy bear "Winnie-the-Pooh" — after Winnipeg, of course:
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| Lieutenant Colebourn, upon his transfer to France, gave the bear to the London Zoo, where A.A. Milne's son Christopher Robin saw the bear. |
See the rest of the photos and read the article HERE.
E X C E L L E N T !
ReplyDeleteMy GRANDdaughter Lauryn (she is about to turn 3) just loves Poo...So do I.
ReplyDeleteGreat stuff AOW.
To0 this very day, I still keep the original copy of "When We Were Very Young" my parents bought to read to me sixty-eight years ago on the table nest to my favorite easy chair. The chair was one of the very first things my mother and father bought when they married in1933. It has been part of my life since before I was born. The table belonged to my aunt and uncle. These are some of the few things I could never bear to part with as long as my life lasts. I only regret that I have no children of my own to pass them on to.
ReplyDeleteTO, not too, or two, dammit.
DeleteShame on me! I'm tutu bad. (:-o
Sorry! I am, indeed, getting old.
I love the little bear. How sweet and quaintly individualistic people used to be!
ReplyDeleteWouldn't you love to learn exactly how a bear cub could be "smuggled" into England? That all by itself would make a great story, I'm sure.
We should acknowledge the contribution of E. H. Shepard, whose illustrations of AA Milne’s work are an integral part of its endearing character. Not many know that most of the famous animal characters were literary depictions of actual toys owned by Christopher Robin as a tot and the basis, of course, for Shepard's illustrations.
ReplyDelete“In 1921, as a first-birthday present, Christopher Robin Milne received a small stuffed bear, which had been purchased at Harrods in London. Eeyore, Piglet, Kanga, and Tigger soon joined Winnie-the-Pooh as Christopher's playmates and the inspiration for the children's classics When We Were Very Young (1924), Winnie-the-Pooh (1926), Now We Are Six (1927), and The House at Pooh Corner (1928), written by his father, A.A. Milne, and illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard. Brought to the United States in 1947, the toys remained with the American publisher E.P. Dutton until 1987, when they were donated to The New York Public Library. For years thousands of children and adults from around the world have come to visit Pooh and his friends, and they are all now happily ensconced in the Children's Center at 42nd Street, ... their beautiful new home at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street.”
http://exhibitions.nypl.org/treasures/items/show/28
Astonishing that these quintessentially British artifacts should end up in New York City, isn't it?
FT,
DeleteThank you for that link. And look at the excellent condition of those original stuffed animals that Christopher Robin Milne had! Quality craftsmanship!
Poor Paddington Bear ended up in Peru!
ReplyDeleteI did not know this! Thank you for sharing. This is awesome!
ReplyDeleteEven the hippies liked Pooh
ReplyDelete