9th August 1944: Smokey Bear, the forest fire prevention mascot, first appears on a poster in the United States

**Scott Allsop** (0:00)
On the 9th of August 1944, the forest fire prevention mascot Smokey Bear made his first appearance on a public poster in the United States. Welcome to HistoryPod.
During the war, timber was an essential strategic resource used in construction, packaging, transport and military infrastructure. Government officials feared that the growing number of accidental forest fires across the United States could reduce the supply of valuable timber and divert resources needed for the war effort. Early public messaging used slogans and temporary mascots, but officials recognised the need for a permanent figure who could communicate the message effectively to both adults and children. Produced in cooperation with the Ad Council, the first Smokey Bear poster, released on 9th August 1944, showed the bear pouring a bucket of water onto a campfire beneath the message, Smokey says care will prevent nine out of ten forest fires. The illustration was created by artist Albert Staehle, whose friendly but authoritative depiction proved immediately successful. In later years, the campaign adopted the slogan, Only you can prevent forest fires, which became closely associated with Smokey Bear and remained one of the longest running public service messages in the United States. The character gained additional publicity in 1950, when a real bear cub was rescued after the Capitan Gap fire in New Mexico. The injured cub was named Smokey, and became the living symbol of the campaign, residing at the Smithsonian National Zoo, where millions of visitors saw him over the following decades.
More than 80 years after his introduction, Smokey Bear continues to help promote responsible behaviour in forests and parks across the United States, through posters, radio, television, schools and community programmes.