Plush Toys

The first commercial concern

Jan 31, 1880

The first commercial concern to create stuffed toys was the German Steiff company in 1880.

The First Teddy Bear

Jan 31, 1903

In 1903 in the USA, Morris Michtom created the first teddy bear, after being inspired by a drawing of Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt with a bear cub.

Peter Rabbit Toy

Jan 31, 1903

The character Peter Rabbit from English author Beatrix Potter was the first stuffed toy to be patented, in 1903.

The First Sock Monkey

Jan 31, 1932

Sock monkeys were first made in 1932. They are handmade stuffed monkeys made out of socks that first appeared during the Great Depression.

The Age of the Beanie Babies

Jan 31, 1993

There are many brands of stuffed toys, including Beanie Babies, a line of stuffed beanbag animals, that was started in 1993. Several marketing strategies, such as keeping them at a low price, introducing a wide variety of Beanie Babies, giving them names, birthdays, and personalities, and retiring certain Beanie Babies after a while (thus giving them collector's value) made them widely popular for years after they were introduced.

Beginning of the Pillow Pet

Dec 1, 2003

Invented by Jennifer Telfer in 2003, Pillow Pets were the first folding stuffed toys. These types have straps that open to transform the toy from the stuffed toy position to pillow position, and close to restore it back to a stuffed toy.

Birth of Webkinz

Jan 31, 2005

Webkinz stuffed animals were created by Ganz in 2005. Each Webkinz toy comes with a unique "Secret Code" that gives access to the Webkinz World website and a virtual version of the toy for online play.