The Smokey Bear hat originated from the poster designed in 1944 for the US Forest Service. The sign contained a bear wearing jeans and a campaign hat on its head and was named “Smokey” in that poster. This was a public service campaign named Smokey Bear Wildfire prevention campaign to educate the Americans on the importance of the matter and their roles in it.
This was the longest-running campaign in history and was popularized immensely due to the bear factor. Not only in the US, but the bear had also become the most recognizable character globally back then.
Fast Forward to 1950, a wildfire was caught in the Capitan Mountains of New Mexico, disrupting the lives of many wild animals. The fire was so intense that it not only took the houses of animals and destroyed the forests but also took the lives of many firefighters. A bear cub was rescued from this wildfire. The news of the cub's rescue spread around New Mexico and people associated their sentiments with the little orphan cub.
He was popularized globally and was named “Smokey The Bear”. People believe that the campaign was named after this bear. However, the truth is otherwise. The cub was named after the popular wildfire prevention campaign initiated in 1944. The campaign was on top of people's minds for over 60 years. People started calling this hat “Smokey Bear Hat” rather than its original name, Campaign Hat or Ranger Hat.
The rescued cub was kept in a zoo until he died in 1976. The Capitan Mountains of New Mexico, where he lived, were turned into Smokey Bear Historical Park. He took back to his home after death and was buried there.