Freddy Bear and little Nell were Frederick & Nelson representative characters and regularly sold as seasonal gifts. The donor of this plush animal set worked as the Assistant Buyer in the Frederick & Nelson home store from 1982-1991. She received this set the same year she was promoted to Buyer in 1987. The toy bears came with a two-page pamphlet that tells the story of how they came to be, which included being discovered in an old wooden barrel dug up during the construction of the Metro bus tunnel. According to the story, the bears went into winter hibernation in 1890 (just before Frederick & Nelson first opened in Seattle in 1891) and "overslept" until 1987!