Join Nicole and Rebekah as they dive into their latest history fascinations, unravel the current administration's crackdown on selective words, and even explore the story of Monarch the bear. To access the OpenSFHistory photo of Monarch, you can use this URL: https://opensfhistory.org/Display/wnp13.134.jpg

Monarch, a Grizzly Bear, was captured at the behest of San Francisco Examiner publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1889. Monarch was on display at Woodward's Gardens until 1894, when he was moved to Golden Gate Park. There he lived in an enclosed bear pit until his death in 1911. He was reportedly the model for the bear on the California state flag, though recent research has cast that conclusion into doubt. The bear pit was situated near the west end of  today's AIDS Memorial Grove, near the California Academy of Sciences.[Monarch the Bear, Golden Gate Park. H. S. Hoyt.]