San Francisco Zoo history

Over the 40 years since its founding in 1954, the San Francisco Zoological Society became a powerful fundraising source for the Zoo, just as Fleishhacker had hoped when he envisioned “…a Zoological Society similar to those established in other large cities.

In 1955, a local San Francisco newspaper purchased Pennie, a baby female Asian elephant, and donated her to the zoo after many children donated their pennies, nickels, and dimes for her purchase.

The Zoological Society will aid the Park Commission in the acquisition of rare animals and in the operation of the Zoo.” True to its charter, the Society immediately exerted its influence on the Zoo, developing a master plan in 1956 and obtaining more than 1,300 annual members in its first 10 years.

Bwana and Missy, the Zoo’s first two gorillas, who had come to the Zoo in 1959, spent the first week in their new exhibit learning to pluck grass and climb real trees.

Then, in 1977, a $2.5 million federal grant enabled the construction of Gorilla World, Wolf Woods, Koala Crossing, the Primate Discovery Center, and Musk Ox Meadow.

The Zoological Society took over management and operations of the Zoo in 1993 from the City of San Francisco in a unique public/private Lease Partnership Agreement.

In 1994, the first major new exhibit was constructed–Otter River.

While the Zoological Society continued to renovate existing exhibits and construct new exhibits here and there, a major turning point came in June 1997.

Carroll bought the animals with an understanding that he could visit with them and he continued to come to the Zoo until his death in 1998.

The moves followed the highly publicized deaths of thirty-eight-year-old Calle in March 2004, and forty-three-year-old Maybelle the following month.

She was later joined in March 2005 by the African elephant Lulu, the last elephant on display at the zoo.

In early 2006, the SF Zoo announced its offer to name a soon-to-hatch American bald eagle after comedian Stephen Colbert.