Nine months after that successful inaugural contest, Swarthmore Athletic Club moved into the Ice Palace, where they played their first game on November 19, 1931, against Crescent A.C. of New York City.

(These writers had already informally dubbed the club as the "Bears from Penn's Woods" when they visited Madison Square Garden to play the New York Rovers.

[6] The schedule for the competition was a six-game double round-robin tournament from April 17 to 24, followed by a best-of-three game final series between the top two teams.

However, they were defeated in the first round of the Calder Cup playoffs by the New York Rangers' top farm team, the Philadelphia Ramblers, three-games-to-two.

[2][3] Former Boston Bruins' coach and Hockey Hall of Fame member (elected 1971) Ralph "Cooney" Weiland guided Hershey throughout the war years winning regular-season titles in 1942–43 and 1943–44.

Hershey won their first of 13 Calder Cup titles in 1947 under second year coach Don Penniston while also winning their fourth Division title in just nine seasons that year dominating the AHL's East with 84 points (25 more than second-place Springfield) on a record of 36–16–12 behind All Star goalie Harvey Bennett, Sr.

[3] From 1950 to 1956 the Bears were coached by a pair of former Boston Bruin defensemen: Johnny Crawford (1950–52), who guided Hershey to another division title in 1951–52, followed by player-coach Murray Henderson (1952–56).

In 1953–54, center George "Red" Sullivan became the second Bear to win a scoring title and the first to be named the league's MVP, collecting 119 points (30–89) in 69 games to set an AHL regular-season scoring record which stood for almost thirty years, while his 89 assists that season is still an AHL record six decades later.

[2][3] Although never an All Star, another player to briefly skate in Hershey during this era was Don "Grapes" Cherry who as a coach (Rochester, Boston, Colorado) and later a broadcaster became and still remains one of the game's most visible and controversial figures.

[2] With the demise of the AHL Pittsburgh Hornets in 1956, Bears managers John Sollenberger and Lloyd Blinco were able to acquire the services of seven of the recent Calder Cup champion Hornets' best players including four-time All Star goalie Gil Mayer and the AHL's eventual all-time scoring leader Willie Marshall (523–852—1,205).

[2] Although it was more than a decade before the Calder Cup returned to Hershey, during the first half of the 1960s five key players joined the club who would each stay from anywhere from seven to nine seasons: defensemen Barry Ashbee (1962–70) and Ralph Keller (1963–72), and forwards Roger DeJordy (1962–70), Michel Harvey (1963–71) and Gil Gilbert (1965–72).

Gilbert led the league in scoring with 100 points (35–65) with teammate Michel Harvey close behind at 93 as the Bears also won their third consecutive Eastern Divisional title.

[2][3] With the close the 1972–73 season Frank Mathers ended his unbroken 17-year run as coach to devote his efforts full-time to his duties as GM.

Right wing Mark Lofthouse became the fifth Bear to win the AHL's scoring title (48-55–103), and on the night of February 7, 1981, he also set a team single-game record eight points (4–4) as the Bears defeated the Rochester Americans at Hersheypark Arena, 11–2, while the team also tied the AHL's then record for goals in a period with nine.

Inness would remain behind the Hershey bench until December, 1984, when Frank Mathers returned to that post on an interim basis for the first time since 1973 and coached the club until then recently retired Hall of Fame Flyer winger Bill Barber took over for the final sixteen games of the season.

Former Flyer right wing and AHL Hall of Fame coach John Paddock (1985–89) took over for the next four seasons and under his guidance the Bears averaged 45 wins a year, won two overall regular-season titles, reached the play-off finals twice, and brought Hershey a seventh Calder Cup championship in 1987–88.

Although the Bears lost to the Adirondack Red Wings in the Calder Cup finals, Tookey also won the Jack Butterfield Trophy as MVP of the play-offs.

After an unexpectedly slow 3–7–0 start, goalie Wendell Young was returned to Hershey from the Flyers and went 33–15–3 with a 2.77 GAA while rookie Darryl Gilmour appeared in 25 games compiling a 14–7–0 record and 3.68 average.

Along with veterans such as Bears' leading scorer center Mitch Lamoureux, wingers Al Hill, Don Nachbaur, Kevin Maxwell, and defensemen Steve Smith and Dave Fenvyes, the team also had nine first- and second-year players including second-year winger Brian Dobbin who finished third in team scoring behind Lamoureux and Maxwell with 83 points (36–47) even though he had been recalled to Philadelphia seven times during the campaign and only played in 54 games for Hershey, and rookie center Glen Seabrooke also broke the 30-goal mark (32) and was fifth overall in Bears scoring with 78 points.

[2][3] The Washington Capitals returned as the Bears NHL parent club in 2005 after a 21-year span with the Boston Bruins, the Philadelphia Flyers, and the Colorado Avalanche.

This marked the ninth time the franchise had won the Calder Cup, which tied Hershey with the original Cleveland Barons for the highest number of AHL playoff titles.

The Bears appeared to have a tenth title wrapped up against Hamilton, who had finished the regular season with 95 points compared to Hershey's 114.

They opened their 21st Calder Cup appearance with a 5–4 overtime win over the Manitoba Moose in Winnipeg, but lost Game 2, 3–1.

The Bears rallied from a 2–0 deficit against the Texas Stars to win their 11th Calder Cup, their second consecutive championship and third in the last five seasons.

Hersheypark Stadium hosted the fourth annual AHL Outdoor Classic in 2013, with the Bears facing their intrastate rival Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

[16] After the 2020–21 season, the Bears won the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy for the best record in the AHL, but no playoffs were held.

Before their move to the Giant Center in 2002, the Hershey Bears wore simpler uniforms with the colors of chocolate brown and white.

For their move to the Giant Center, the Bears unveiled a new identity-its team colors being burgundy, black, gold, and silver.

In the advent of the 2007–08 season, all of the teams of the American Hockey League unveiled newly designed Reebok Edge uniforms, including the Bears.

The current third jersey features a cursive style Hershey wording, above the number on the front, in a dark tan color.