ZSL London Zoo Animals kept at london zoo in the past

Pertinax said:
I don't remember this house. Can you jog my memory? Where did it stand in relation to the old Monkey House? I thought the Sobells were largely are on the site of that.
Click to expand...
The South Mammal House was next door to the old Monkey House; it was actually between the Monkey House and the bear dens; it was also opposite the Stork & Ostrich House.

Indeed the Sobell Pavilions were largely built on the site of the old Monkey House but they also occupied the sites of various other structures (including the Pelican Pool, the Great Aviary, the South Mammal House and the bear dens).
 
Last edited:
Does anybody has a bit information about the Zoo's first elphant ? Google wasn't succesful, and I haveenot enough books about the zoo's history in my collection. I know, it arrived in 1831, that's it.

I also would like to know a bit more about the first elephant house-the Elephant Stables. Thank you.

By the way- I found this 1873 guidebook :

Guide to the gardens of the Zoological Society of London. c.1.

Unfortunetyl,only online readable, so no download is possible. But better than nothing...
 
Bib Fortuna said:
Does anybody has a bit information about the Zoo's first elphant ? Google wasn't succesful, and I haveenot enough books about the zoo's history in my collection. I know, it arrived in 1831, that's it.
Click to expand...
London Zoo's first elephant was "Jack", a male Asiatic elephant, who was purchased on 11th May 1831 from a Captain Smith. This elephant lived at the zoo for sixteen years, dying on 5th June 1847.

According to Brightwell (1952), the elephant "Jack" killed a zoo rhinoceros by holding it so tightly against the bars dividing their enclosures that several of the rhino's ribs were broken.
 
Tim May said:
London Zoo's first elephant was "Jack", a male Asiatic elephant, who was purchased on 11th May 1831 from a Captain Smith. This elephant lived at the zoo for sixteen years, dying on 5th June 1847.

According to Brightwell (1952), the elephant "Jack" killed a zoo rhinoceros by holding it so tightly against the bars dividing their enclosures that several of the rhino's ribs were broken.
Click to expand...

Poor rhino :(, what species was it ? o_O
 
Tim May said:
According to Brightwell (1952), the elephant "Jack" killed a zoo rhinoceros by holding it so tightly against the bars dividing their enclosures that several of the rhino's ribs were broken.
Click to expand...

Onychorhynchus coronatus said:
Poor rhino :(, what species was it ? o_O
Click to expand...
Brightwell doesn't record the species of rhinoceros but it must have been an Indian rhinoceros; no other rhino species were acquired until after "Jack" died.
 
Tim May said:
According to Brightwell (1952), the elephant "Jack" killed a zoo rhinoceros by holding it so tightly against the bars dividing their enclosures that several of the rhino's ribs were broken.
Click to expand...
Having looked into this in more detail, it appears that Brightwell over-dramatised the story and the elephant did not kill the rhinoceros outright.
In an article on Indian rhinoceros anatomy, published in the Transactions of the Zoological Society of London, Owen recounts the story of the elephant and rhino. He comments it "may have led to the fracture of the rib" but adds that he cannot "attribute to this old injury the immediate cause of the animal's rapidly fatal malady".
 
Last edited:
Bib Fortuna said:
I also would like to know a bit more about the first elephant house-the Elephant Stables.
Click to expand...

The zoo's Elephant Stables were designed by Decimus Burton in 1831. It had a thatched roof and pointed, cathedral-like doors and windows and, according to an 1862 guidebook, there was an adjacent paddock with bathing pool through which the animals were rotated.

Aside from the elephants and rhinos, the zoo's first giraffes were temporarily housed here in 1836 while Burton designed the (still-standing) bespoke house (see here for an illustration of the giraffes in this house: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1859-0316-544).

The building was replaced in the late 1868/1869 by a building designed by Anthony Salvin.

See the below link for more information (and an illustration):
A delightful promenade: The early topography of London Zoo 1826–1837 | British Library - Picturing Places
 
Has anyone else noticed that the head of the lion tamarin on page 20 of the 1911 edition seems to be much darker than its body?
 
The Javan rhino is listed on page 101 of the 1911 edition; ZTL says there were Javan rhinos at London Zoo in 1874-85.
 
Daubentoniidae said:
I found a guide online available for download from 1911:
Official guide to the gardens of the Zoological Society of London : London Zoo (London, England) : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive
Click to expand...

Thanks for reminding me Daubentoniidae - the Internet Archive site is a very useful resource for those with an interest in ZSL history and without easy access to the ZSL Library.

Amongst the items that can be found from a “Zoological Society of London” search are copies of:
  • ZSL Proceedings from the 19th century and early 20th century
  • ZSL Transactions from the 19th century and early 20th century
  • The Zoological Record from the 19th century and early 20th century
  • 19th century ZSL Annual Reports
  • 19th century catalogues of the ZSL Library
  • Eight editions of the “List of the vertebrated animals now or lately living in the gardens of the Zoological Society of London” published between 1862 and 1896 (these give a wealth of information on animals kept at Regent’s Park during that period)
  • A record of the progress of the Zoological Society of London during the nineteenth century - 1901
Hope these keep you educated and entertained.

The site also has a wealth of other zoo related documents including publications of the New York and SanDiego Societies.
 
Thanks, Tim. Until I looked at the 1911 zoo guide, I thought that the animals listed in Bold were species at the zoo when the guide was written. Listing an animal that hasn't been kept at the zoo for @ 26 years seems dishonest. I have a guide for the Bronx Zoo that listed the indri before it didn't arrive.
 
Tim May said:
London Zoo only had one Javan rhinoceros; it arrived on 7th March 1884 and died 23rd January 1885.
Click to expand...
You just beat me there, I consulted John Edwards’ book and was about to weigh in with that information! Great minds etc....
 
I did also manage to find a guide from 1862 online but can't remember where I downloaded it from and it's too large to upload here.
 
FBBird said:
You just beat me there, I consulted John Edwards’ book and was about to weigh in with that information! Great minds etc....
Click to expand...
I've also double-checked in Rookmaaker's book "The Rhinoceros in Captivity" to confirm.

The last Javan rhino outside Asia was the one that died in Adelaide Zoo in 1907.

I agree with "Dassie rat", though, the 1911 guide is rather confusing here.
 
Thanks, Tim

The London Zoo Library should have a full set of zoo guides. Several years ago, Frank Wheeler said he had a full set of guides, except one. So did the library. Each had the guide the other was missing. When Frank died, his books were given to the library.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top