5 Most Interesting Facts About the Chicago Bears History

The Chicago Bears are one of the country’s top professional football teams, playing in the North Division of the National Football Conference. The team got its start all the way back in 1920 after being founded by George Hales. Originally, it went by the somewhat obscure name of Decatur Staleys and then, just a year later, transformed into the Chicago Staleys.

Nobody seemed to know what a Staley was, so the team finally adjusted its name to the Chicago Bears, and it’s stuck ever since. The team has its headquarters close to Lake Forest, Illinois, and has enjoyed plenty of success over the years. The team is famous for beating the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX and for the number of players it now has in the hall of fame.

Let’s take a look at the 5 most interesting facts about the Chicago Bears:

New Playing Grounds

“Old Days”A Tough Day for NY Giant Fans and Pure Joy in Chicago.The 1963 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field.#NFL #NYGiants #Bears #Chicago #1960s
pic.twitter.com/JutEPmXBm0
— Tom's Old Days (@sigg20) December 11, 2019

The Chicago Bears are continually changing their playing ground. The Bears started out at Wrigley Field in the 1920s. They played there until the 1970s, at which point, they moved to Soldier Field. They continued playing there from 1971 until 2002 before they moved to the Memorial Stadium. During this time, the Bears were building the new Soldier Field. They completed that project in 2003, and have been at the renovated Soldier Field ever since.

Original Soldier Field

https://twitter.com/CasualSec/status/532160138350977024

The original purpose of Soldier Field was to serve as a memorial for the fallen in WWI – the Great War. It remained as a memorial until it became part of the Chicago Bears training ground in 1971. The club still pays homage to the fallen soldiers today, even though it has now moved and hosts events on the premises.

9 Championships

Highlights of notable artifacts in our collection from the @ChicagoBears' 1985 #SuperBowl Championship.#DaBears pic.twitter.com/SsJTzzuRz3
— Pro Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) January 15, 2021

The Chicago Bears might not be one of the top teams today. However, the club has an immensely impressive pedigree. Before the merger of the AFL and NFL, the team won championships over multiple decades, securing wins in 1963, 1946, 1943, 1940, 1933, 1932, and 1921. The team hasn’t won a lot since then, but it has always been dangerous. And it could hit the big time again in the future.

14 Retired Jerseys

The @ChicagoBears have the most retired numbers in the @NFL with a total of 14 jerseys. #JerseyFactOfTheWeek pic.twitter.com/D0qMhUZGmM
— Athletic Knit (@Athletic_Knit) March 2, 2016

The type of people addicted to sites like GoatScores for the latest sports information and trivia, will love this fact. The Chicago Bears have retired more than fourteen players’ numbers from their lineup in honor of their contributions to the club. Retired numbers include #89 for Mike Ditka, #77 for Harold Grange, #56 for Bill Hewitt, #42 for Sid Luckman, and #5 for George McAfee. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Brian Urlacher join the long list in the near future.

Mascot's History

Bears Family, you know a football game is not official without "Staley Da Bear"! Love our mascot! Gotta show Staley some love and have him sign my hat along with his fellow BEARS players! BEARDOWN 4 LIFE! pic.twitter.com/k4WAbY36kW
— RASTA AK (@RastaAK47) December 17, 2018

While the Chicago Bears might have officially dropped the name Staley from their title, they haven’t given up on it completely. The club still employs a mascot named Staley Da Bear who wears a shirt with #00. The bear is named after A. E. Staley who founded the Bear’s franchise all the way back in 1919.