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CarriageHouse551 Jul 29, 2013

Hello forum! This is my first post here so I hope I am going about it right.
I went digging in an old house just a few days ago and found this old bear in the attic. I almost left it there because i didn't know what it was and it looked kinda ratty, but something made me take it home with me. I'd say it was the mouth that opens and closes. It just looked old to me.

Anyway, I am pretty sure that it is a 1907 Laughing Roosevelt Teddy Bear, judging by some similar images I have found on the Internet.

I actually captured video of the find. Here is a link. You can see the bear at 09:45 in the video.
http://youtu.be/lHEq_WH_HGM?t=9m45s

My questions to the forum would be these...
1.) Should I offer the bear for sale as-is, or should  I pay to have it reconditioned and then offer it for sale?
2.) What kind of interest is there in this bear from the forum users here? I know it is old. Is it still considered desirable to the Teddy Bear community in this shape?
3.) Would you suggest an actual live auction for this bear, or Ebay... Or some other method of sale to reach the right buyer?

Thanks for any help in figuring out what this little guy is worth that y'all can offer us. Very much appreciated as we are complete newbs to Teddy Bears.

dangerbears Jul 29, 2013

Hi Johnny and Kim,

I think you'll want to get good photos of the bear and send them to Ken Yenke. (You'll also need to send him a check for $10.) His website is www.kenyenke.com. (email is kenyenke@aol.com)

From what I can see in the video, there was a lot of rodent activity in that attic, and there could be water and/or dry rot issues as well. That being said, it's an interesting old bear, and you should get some expert advice on what to do with it.

Here on Teddy Talk, the focus isn't really on antiques, but you might get some other replies.

Becky

CarriageHouse551 Jul 29, 2013

Thanks for the fast reply and the tip. I will definitely look at that site.

CarriageHouse551 Jul 29, 2013

Hi,

As requested, I just took some pics. As you can see, the bear is hurtin', but he's almost all there. He even still grunts when you squeeze him. He's blind though. :(

Thanks for looking.

dangerbears Jul 29, 2013

Yes, he's definitely in rough shape, but quite a special guy. I'd love to hear what you find out!

Becky

SueAnn Help Advisor, Banner SponsorJul 29, 2013

I definitely believe you found an old Laughing Roosevelt Bear, Carriage House, but it's condition will certainly lessen its value.  I found one online from a 1999 Christie's auction  that sold for $1288.00, but it was in much better shape.  I'm sure Ken Yenke can give you some good information.

CarriageHouse551 Jul 30, 2013

I'm actually going back to the house where we found this today. Leaving in about an hour and it takes about an hour and a half to get there. Going to try to find his pendant and eyes and missing tooth. Probably not gonna find them, but worth a peek. We want to look for parts to other items we found there on the first trip too, as well as some personal documents, pictures, etc to help us identify the owners and possibly the subject in the old portrait we found. Just looking for a little more history on what we dug out of there.

Thanks for the replies. I will keep you posted on the Teddy bear.

BTW, I'm Johnny.
Hello.

1 user likes this: dangerbears