PHOTO: Historic paintings are on tour in celebration of Smokey Bear’s 80th birthday.
The Superior National Forest is hosting the 19 paintings at their Supervisor’s Office in Duluth.
Smokey Bear’s story came about after a young bear cub was caught in a forest fire; he was saved but badly burned so, they ended up naming him Smokey.
The painter Rudolph or Rudy Wendelin worked for the Forest Service as an illustrator beginning in 1933. He created these paintings to bring the bear to life as a message for fire prevention.
“You know on the Superior National Forest there’s definitely a heightened fire risk that we’re facing, and I think having this opportunity to really celebrate Smokey’s 80th birthday. To look at these paintings, to bring that public consciousness of ‘hey there’s things we can do to prevent fires, to manage how we engage with our natural resources.’