Fire Mascots Throughout History

By Samantha Gleissner

The United States Forest Service introduced Smokey Bear as a fire prevention spokesman in 1944, his original slogan was "Smokey Says – Care Will Prevent 9 out of 10 Forest Fires". The Ad Council changed the slogan in 1947 to “Remember… Only YOU Can Prevent Forest Fires.” Smokey Bear is one of the most recognized forest service characters of all time. In 1950 a black bear cub was rescued from the Lincoln National Forest when 17,000 acres burned, his arms and legs were injured in the fire, but he managed to climb a tree to await rescue. The black bear cub was originally named “Hotfoot Teddy” but was renamed “Smokey” after the fire prevention mascot and was soon thereafter given a home at the National Zoo in Washington D.C., where he lived and received thousands of letters and visitors every day for 26 years. Smokey Bear received so many letters that in 1964 he was given his own unique zip code by the U.S. Postal Service.  Smokey Bear “retired” in 1975 and his adopted son “Little Smokey” was officially given the title of “Smokey Bear II”. The original Smokey Bear passed away in 1976 and his body was returned to Capitan, New Mexico where he was laid to rest in Smokey Bear Historical Park.

Woodsy Owl first became a mascot for the United States Forest Service in 1970 with the original slogan “Give A Hoot! Don’t Pollute.” The slogan was later changed to "Lend a hand - care for the land!" to encourage a broader participation in the care of the natural environment. Woodsy Owl was originally created with the aim of teaching young children (between 5-8 years of age) to take care of the land and appreciate nature.

The Guberif (Firebug spelled backwards) was first introduced in 1945 as a part of the “Keep Idaho Green” campaign. Unlike the previous mascots discussed, The Guberif provided an example of what not to do. The Guberif was noted to enjoy the outdoors, but was uneducated on fire safety. Notorious for starting fires the original slogan was “Don’t Be A Guberif! Help Prevent Forest And Rangeland Fires”.  Although the Guberif lost some popularity over time due to lack of use, he is making a comeback to the Idaho Forest and Fire scene with a slightly revamped look, but similar messages. In the early years of The Guberif, his slogan was painted statewide onto forest roadways, rest stops and parking lots to help spread the message of fire safety awareness in Idaho. In recent years, Idaho Firewise has revived the road painting tradition at some of the Idaho State parks, as well as releasing several new advertising campaigns that feature the Guberif.

Fire Wolf first made his appearance as an anti-fire mascot for the American Forest Products Industry in 1944 around the same time as Smokey Bear. He was introduced as “The Forest No. 1 Enemy” and was in fact a wolf that was entirely made up of fire. The Fire Wolf was given the roll of a villain, as which advocated for carelessness with fire safety. Although he gained some popularity in the 1940’s, Fire Wolf was lost among other more popular fire safety characters such as Smokey Bear. Although Fire Wolf was a villain trying to convince forest patrons to disregard burn warnings and safety precautions, he was presented with educational messages such as “Trees Make Jobs… Protect Them!”, “Help Keep America Green!” and “One Tree Will Make A Million Matches – One Match Can Destroy A Million Trees.”