Book Review: American Zoos During the Depression: A New Deal for Animals (2010) by Jesse C. Donahue and Erik K. Trump This particular zoo book takes a single subject and deals with it concisely, intelligently and with a vast amount of detail in its 194 enlightening pages. It is astonishing to think that while the Great Depression raged during the 1930s, when families were struggling to exist on the bare essentials, zoos actually prospered. Many notable buildings were constructed due to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's series of federal relief programs. Generally known as WPA (Works Progress Administration) projects, “nearly every zoo in the United States took advantage of New Deal relief labour programs...it is no exaggeration to say that the 1930s were a golden age of zoo construction.” Some zoos received only a little funding, while others had substantial additions. For example, a stroll around the Toledo Zoo reveals the Reptile House, Aquarium, Amphitheatre, Museum of Science and Aviary – all 5 built with WPA labour and funded almost entirely by the U.S. Government. Here is a breakdown of the book's 6 chapters: Chapter 1, Building the New Deal Zoo, starts off by looking at statistics as to how many zoos were around in the early 1930s and also declaring that many zoos were struggling. There is then a focus on how FDR's New Deal aided zoos and 8 terrific pages describing a trio of NYC zoos: Central Park, Prospect Park and Staten Island. The complete lack of photos in this section is a disappointment, but there are many fascinating facts. The Central Park Zoo, by then an aging eyesore, was completely rebuilt and “it took only 16 days to design the zoo and eight months to build it”. There are 5-6 pages on Audubon Zoo to round out the terrific first chapter. Chapter 2, Who Ran the Zoo?, focuses on long-time National Zoo Director William Mann, zoo staff, science education and early conservation initiatives. Chapter 3, Why Zoos?, offers up a vindication for the very idea of zoos at a time when thousands of families were sick, struggling and barely surviving...and yet men were working on zoo buildings all across the nation. There are 9 riveting pages (at least they are riveting to a self-proclaimed 'zoo nerd') all about the St. Louis Zoo and how it had to battle for public funding. Many zoo enthusiasts are well aware that the St. Louis Zoo continues to receive millions of dollars in annual support, is still a free attraction, and not only has 3 million annual visitors but is one of the world's great zoos. To think that it was struggling at the onset of the 1930s gives one pause to think of the consequences of what could have been if public support had waned. This long chapter also has several pages detailing the African-American experience involving zoos in the 1930s, which makes for fascinating reading. Chapter 4, Why Snakes? The Spectacle and Science of Snakes, analyzes the impact of the WPA relief programs on American zoos in terms of snakes. At least a dozen Reptile Houses all across the nation were either built or renovated during the 1930s, with a particular focus on the Staten Island Zoo and National Zoo Reptile Houses. There is mention of educating the public in terms of snakes, and then over 20 pages about the North American antivenin program. In truth, this was my least favourite section of the book as it steers away from zoos and seems to go off on a long, exhaustive tangent. Chapter 5, A New Deal for Animal Welfare, paints a horrific picture of zoos in the 1920s, before the New Deal money began to flow. The legendary Director Marlin Perkins “arrived at the Buffalo Zoo in 1938, walked into the main zoo building – an old wooden structure with double-decker animal cages – where his office was to be located, and promptly threw up in reaction to the stench.” Newspapers were full of articles crying out for the closure of zoos, but in the 1930s new buildings led to better animal-keeper relationships and zoo animals received updated exhibits. The rest of the chapter contains approximately 20 pages about Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo, stating that the facility “was very slow to tap WPA funds to develop its zoo” and in the end there was a Monkey Island (long since demolished) and then basic alterations such as fences, walls and other construction aid. Tusko, an ex-circus elephant who ended up briefly in Seattle, receives a few pages and this chapter encapsulates the entire book. The authors take a relatively small event and do a great job of providing an in-depth account of what happened. Chapter 6, The Decline, Resurrection, and Legacy of New Deal Zoos, is the final chapter and it looks at how the 1930s-era buildings survived WW2, were attacked by the anti-zoo brigade in the 1970s and “The New Deal structures, considered 'modern' in their time, looked cramped and inhumane by the standards of the 1980s”. Zoo enthusiasts will already know that Central Park Zoo was closed and completely rebuilt in the late 1980s, and that Toledo Zoo recently spent $25 million on completely overhauling the interior of its Aquarium. Toledo is spending at least $27 million on its Museum of Science building, another structure from the 1930s that will likely be just as impressive as the Aquarium when it reopens in 2019. There are a couple of pages about money made from concessions, with the interesting information that in 1940 the San Diego Zoo earned 9% of its total revenue from concessions, while by the time 1970 rolled around the San Diego Zoo “earned 56 percent of its annual revenue from concessions profits”. It would be intriguing to know how much that world-famous zoo earns now, and one can easily forgive the plethora of restaurants, cafes and gift shops across the grounds because the money generated is substantial. I have a few hundred zoo books and generally purchase whatever I can get my hands on. American Zoos During the Depression: A New Deal for Animals is a terrific addition to my collection, with a myopic yet informative focus on zoo projects during a single decade in the history of zoological parks in the USA. I would have preferred a much longer volume, or more than the scant dozen or so photos, but those are minor quibbles when presented with such an engaging book. More than anything else, it has made me appreciate the history and architecture located throughout many prominent American zoos, and how those buildings were created during the 1930s when the United States was in the midst of its leanest economic times. Review by Scott Richardson
I'm definitely going to want to read this one! My local zoo, the Sunset Zoo was founded during the WPA era and many of the exhibits originate from that time.
