The decorative bear statue is located at the entrance to the Town Hall on Lawton Street in Congleton.
Our Town Bear (No.12) is one of the many bears that were created in 2011 for 'Bearmania' the Congleton Year of the Bear!.
The bears are all in a sitting position. Our Town Bear is painted with a bronze head and legs, a chequered coloured pattern covering the body that depicts features of the town such as the town hall, town coat of arms, Lawton Street, buildings, viaduct and parks.
Photographs of the bears can be seen at the following link: (
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During the Summer of 2011, 76 five foot bears, all individually decorated by the people of Congleton could be seen at locations around the town. There was a bear trail map that linked them all together.
The design for the bear was created by a locally based sculptor Billy Hyland.
Through the efforts of the local schools, businesses and volunteers, 'Bearmania' raised over £10,000 for local and international charities.
Some of the Bears can still be spotted in locations around the town.
Congleton Beartown Ltd, a group made up of dedicated volunteers donated enough money to rescue a Moon Bear from the hideous exploitation of bile farming and Bosley Bear is now living safely in a sanctuary in Vietnam.
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Congleton is known locally as 'Beartown'
In the 1620s Congleton became notorious when bear-baiting and cockfighting were popular sports. When the old bear became ill and died just before the Wakes the town lacked the money to pay for a new, more aggressive bear. Legend has it that Congleton used the money it had saved to buy a new Bible to pay for a new bear instead.
This earned Congleton the nickname 'Beartown'.
A folk song "Congleton Bear" was written by Derbyshire folk artist John Tams in the early 1970s. The chorus has the following words;
'Congleton Bear, Congleton Bear
They sold the Church Bible to buy a new bear.'
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