Smokey Bear, the icon for wildfire safety, turns 80 years old Friday. For decades, the American public has been educated about the dangers of forest fires thanks to the bear’s memorable posters and imagery, often accompanied by the iconic line: “Only you can prevent wildfires.”
The origins of America’s longest-running public service announcement campaign date back to the early 1940s, amid World War II.
A year after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, a Japanese submarine launched a barrage of explosive shells that landed on an oil field near Santa Barbara, California, which was close to the Los Padres National Forest, according to the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
The attack left Americans in a panic. They thought, “What if enemy explosive shells hit forests across the Pacific Coast and caused a wildfire?” according to the department.
Protecting America’s forests from wildfires quickly became an issue of national importance, the department reported. Posters and slogans made by the Wartime Advertising Council included phrases such as “Forest Fires Aid the Enemy.” Meanwhile, the Cooperative Forest Fire Prevention Program — a group designed by the Forest Service — encouraged people to take steps to prevent accidental fires and help with the war.
After the Walt Disney movie “Bambi,” which includes a scene with a forest fire, was produced, the company permitted the Cooperative Forest Fire Prevention Program to use the character’s image on a poster, the department said. Although the poster was a hit, it didn’t last long as Disney only loaned Bambi’s likeness to the government for a year.
Since the Forest Service wanted an animal that would exclusively belong to the Cooperative Forest Fire Prevention Program, it was decided that the animal would be a bear, the department said.
On Aug. 9, 1944, the government commissioned artist Albert Staehle to paint the first poster of Smokey Bear, according to the department. The poster depicted the animated American black bear pouring a bucket of water on a campfire in the forest. Beneath him were the words “SMOKEY SAYS — Care will prevent 9 out of 10 forest fires!” The image of Smokey Bear then became used on fire prevention equipment.
The slogan, “Only YOU Can Prevent Forest Fires” was first used in 1947, the department said. The iconic line was first said by Jack Weaver, a radio personality in Washington, D.C.
Smokey Bear’s message was later changed to “Only You Can Prevent Wildfires” in 2001 as the term wildfire can apply to “uncontrolled, unplanned, unwanted outdoor fire,” the department stated.
Was there ever a real-life Smokey Bear?
Smokey Bear was also a real-life bear who was the victim of a wildfire as a young cub, according to the Smithsonian Institution. In 1950, a wildfire broke out in the Lincoln National Forest in New Mexico, where Smokey Bear lived. Despite the cub being badly burned, he survived his injuries after being treated by veterinarians in Santa Fe.
In June 1950, the National Forest Service transferred Smokey to the National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C., with the idea the rest of his life be devoted to preventing wildlife fires, the Smithsonian said.
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Word of Smokey’s arrival quickly spread after a press release from the U.S. Forest Service in July 1950 announced he’d be coming to the nation’s capital, the Smithsonian reported. There, Smokey became the national symbol for forest fire prevention.
He died in 1976 and was returned to Capitan, New Mexico, where he was buried in the State Historical Park, the department stated.
How have people celebrated Smokey’s birthdays in the past?
Many of Smokey’s anniversaries have been celebrated by bolstering his public image. In 1984, when Smokey Bear’s 40th birthday was celebrated, it was the first day of the issue of his postage stamp, according to the department. The event took place in Capitan, New Mexico.
In 2004, during Smokey’s 60th birthday, a ceremony in Universal City, California was held where the bear blew out candles as children of wildland firefighters sang the birthday song to him, the department said.
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Has Smokey prevented wildfires?
Smokey Bear can be identified by 96% of U.S. adults, a testament to the bear’s popularity, according to the Smithsonian. However, wildfires are still a problem in the United States, especially in the west.
In the past six decades, wildfires in the western region of the United States of America have grown, according to NASA. A little more than 60% of western wildfires have occurred since 2000.
The fires that burn in the west are also burning more acres of land, NASA added. Since the 1950s, the average annual amount of acres burned has increased. The rising number of wildfires along with their sizes is most likely due to the effects of climate change, NASA said.
Factors such as rising temperatures, low relative humidity, high wind speed and low precipitation, make it easier for vegetation in the west to catch on fire, Amber Soja, a wildfire expert at NASA’s Langley Research Center, said.
“Those fire conditions all fall under weather and climate,” Soja said. “The weather will change as Earth warms, and we’re seeing that happen.”
