Monarch (San Francisco zoo exclusive)

SWING TAG POEM (inside right)

Through the kindness of Mr. Hearst
The Monarch Grizzly was the first
And on our flag, so proud and true
First at the San Francisco Zoo !

SWING TAG (inside)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

1. Monarch was announced by Ty in a Press Release on April 4, 2007 and was officially added to the current list on Ty’s website on May 9, 2007. Monarch was available at the Zoo’s Wildlife Connection gift shop and online for $7.99.

2. The monarch grizzly bear is depicted on the California state flag, and has a historical relationship with the San Francisco Zoo. The reference to Mr. Randolph Hearst in the swing tag poem refers to the publisher of the SF Examiner in the late 1880s. In 1889, in an attempt to expand readership, he challenged a reporter to locate and return with the supposedly extinct grizzly bear. The reporter returned with a 1600 pound grizzly. Hearst named it Monarch after the header of his newspaper that read: “Monarch of the Dailies.”

3. Monarch the grizzly bear dazzled crowds until its demise in 1911.

Special thanks to Chris P. from Michigan, for permission to use his research for the information on this page. His original article appeared at beaniesource.com (now inactive).

ADDITIONAL PHOTOGRAPHS