Bill and Friends

About the Real Bill

Bill the Bear is an Asiatic black bear. He came to Towneley in 1910 from Kashmir, a mountainous region in South East Asia. A local engineer William T. Taylor, who travelled the world with his job, gave Bill to Burnley Corporation as a gift. Bill first appears in the Towneley exhibition catalogue in 1923 and has been popular with visitors to Towneley Hall ever since.

Asiatic black bears are found throughout Asia, including Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, China, Japan and Taiwan. They have long black fur with a distinct white patch on the chest. They live in forests, in hilly and mountainous areas, and eat a wide variety of foods, including seeds, fruit, meat and even honey. As the human population encroaches on their habitat they are more likely to come into contact with people.