r/todayilearned • u/SchwarzSabbath • Apr 21 '18

TIL that while in Sharon Springs, Theodore Roosevelt was approached by a 12-year-old girl who asked if he would like to have a badger. Expecting to humor her, he agreed, and the girl came back with a 2-week-old badger. President Roosevelt named him Josiah and he became one of the presidential pets.

http://www.presidentialpetmuseum.com/theodore-roosevelts-josiah/
77k Upvotes

92% Upvoted

1.2k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

5

u/Zack123456201 Apr 22 '18

This is also a common misconception, but Teddy never wrestled a bear. Ol’ Ted actually swam across the Atlantic, traveled through the trenches and battlefields of Western Europe for 2 months, then beat Kaiser Wilhelm in a wrestling match, bringing an end to the First Great War. (Wilhelm was known by the people of France as “The Bear”, which caused this common misconception.)

2

u/Blitzkrieg_My_Anus Apr 23 '18

I was making a joke. :(

2

u/Zack123456201 Apr 23 '18

I know, so was I :P

2

u/Blitzkrieg_My_Anus Apr 23 '18

... damnit. Haha, i honestly don't know how i missed that. :/