photo #8520977

While Winnie was very gentle at the London Zoo, she was still a full-grown black bear. Christopher Robin was often allowed inside her enclosure under supervision to feed her condensed milk from a spoon. His unique friendship with the bear was what truly captured his father's imagination and set the stories in motion. The name “Pooh” did not come from Winnie the bear herself. It was the name Christopher Robin had given to a swan he used to feed in the mornings. When author A.A. Milne combined the names, “Winnie-the-Pooh” was born. His books became a global phenomenon, bringing comfort to families for generations. The soldier who started it all, Harry Colebourn, survived the war and visited Winnie at the zoo whenever he could. He had intended to bring her back to Canada, but seeing how loved she was by the public in London, he made the difficult decision to let her stay.