# That Old Teddy Bear o' Mine **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 26, 2008, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-old-teddy-bear-o-mine/439177 "2008-02-26T02:11:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-old-teddy-bear-o-mine/439177/1 "2008-02-26T02:11:39Z")
My mother has an old teddy bear – given to her by HER mother, circa 1906. She was told at one time that it was worth over $1,000. What resources exist to get this kind of antique item properly appraised? Do we have to wait for Antique Roadshow to come through town? ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-old-teddy-bear-o-mine/439177/2 "2008-02-26T03:34:11Z")
We need a few clues. Is there any kind of a tag/anything, that identifies the maker? What is the height of the bear. Condition? While many bears from the period are worth only $100 or so, some are indeed worth $1000. As a side note, the “Teddy Bear” was only introduced at Christmas of 1905. By Christmas of 1906, the public was bemoaning the fact that it had surplanted the “doll” as the number one wished-for toy. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-old-teddy-bear-o-mine/439177/3 "2008-02-26T03:36:43Z")
[QUOTE=samclem] We need a few clues. Is there any kind of a tag/anything, that identifies the maker? What is the height of the bear. Condition? While many bears from the period are worth only $100 or so, some are indeed worth $1000. As a side note, the “Teddy Bear” was only introduced at Christmas of 1905. By Christmas of 1906, the public was bemoaning the fact that it had surplanted the “doll” as the number one wished-for toy. [/QUOTE] I’ll see if I can post a picture tomorrow after I unearth the bear. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-old-teddy-bear-o-mine/439177/4 "2008-02-26T05:21:09Z")
[QUOTE=Bricker] My mother has an old teddy bear – given to her by HER mother, circa 1906. [/QUOTE] Not to get generational on your ass :). but I’m 63. Perhaps as old as you. My mom was born in 1923. Her mom was born in 1900. I’m curious as to how your mom’s mom could have given her this bear in 1906. I think someone in the family indeed got it in that time frame. That would have been your grandmother, when she was a child. Right? ---
**Author:** ![Triskadecamus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@Triskadecamus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triskadecamus)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-old-teddy-bear-o-mine/439177/5 "2008-02-26T05:23:48Z")
[QUOTE=Bricker] I’ll see if I can post a picture tomorrow after I unearth the bear. [/QUOTE] Burial is not the storage method most preferred by Antique Dealers. 🙂 Tris ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-old-teddy-bear-o-mine/439177/6 "2008-02-26T17:22:42Z")
[QUOTE=Triskadecamus] Burial is not the storage method most preferred by Antique Dealers. 🙂 Tris [/QUOTE] But it give such a nice patina. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-old-teddy-bear-o-mine/439177/7 "2008-02-26T22:01:00Z")
[QUOTE=samclem] Not to get generational on your ass :). but I’m 63. Perhaps as old as you. My mom was born in 1923. Her mom was born in 1900. I’m curious as to how your mom’s mom could have given her this bear in 1906. I think someone in the family indeed got it in that time frame. That would have been your grandmother, when she was a child. Right? [/QUOTE] The bear itself is (allegedly) circa 1906. It wasn’t given to my mom in 1906. Those dang dangling modifiers get me every time. My mom was born in 1926; her mom, my grandmother, was born in 1892. Counting on my fingers and toes, that would mean Grandma got the bear when she was 14-ish, and gave it to my mom at some undetermined point after that. ---
**Author:** ![Rayne\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2008, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-old-teddy-bear-o-mine/439177/8 "2008-02-26T22:54:21Z")
If the bear has a button in its ear and that button has the name [Steiff](http://www.worldcollectorsnet.com/steiff/) on it, then it could be worth quite a lot of money.