Monday, January 23, 2012

Vintage Monkey Islands--Bristol Zoo



Vintage Monkey Islands--Dublin Zoo

Vintage Monkey Islands--Los Angles Zoo





Chimpanzee Island was built in the early 70's when Warren Thomas was the Director. Is Chimpanzee Island now Mahale Island or is Mahale Island a newer exhibit?

Vintage Monkey Islands--Oklahoma City Zoo


The Circus "NO SPIN ZONE": Ghost Exhibit's--Oklahoma City Zoo's "Monkey Island"

Vintage Monkey Islands--National Zoo

1986

I believe Monkey Island is now Lemur Island?

Vintage Monkey Islands--Overton Park

2008

1920

Monkey Mountain was the precursor to Memphis Zoo's Monkey Island, below.

Vintage Monkey Islands--Memphis Zoo

1967

1942

1940

1938

Memphis Zoo's second Monkey Island was built in 1936(it looks remarkably like the Feiervary Park Monkey island built in 1928 in a below post). It was replaced by Primate Canyon in 1995

Vintage Monkey Islands--Hershey Zoo

1964

With the advent of World War II, Hershey Zoo closed on December 20, 1942 for the duration. The zoo reopened on May 7, 1950, under the leadership of the new director, Clarence Moose and assistant director Raleigh Hughes. Hershey Zoo followed the fortunes of Hershey Park during the 1950s and 1960s. At first the zoo was able to add some additional attractions, most notably Monkey Island in 1954. But there was never any money to develop the zoo. Hershey Zoo was closed in 1971 as part of Hershey Estates' planning for a new themed amusement park, Hersheypark and reopened in 1978 as ZooAmerica.

Vintage Monkey Islands--Topeka Zoo

The Topeka Zoo opened its gates in 1933 after the first planned animal exhibits were built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA).

The featured attraction was Monkey Island, which included a miniature city hall building and trapeze surrounded by a moat containing sea lions. The monkeys could sit in windows labeled with the titles of city officials.

The monkeys discovered how to open their cages and kept getting out and roaming over Gage Park(Topeka Zoo). That led to the director of the London Zoo advising then Topeka director Gary Clarke to give the monkeys their own key so they could come and go as they pleased. The bloody Brits!!!!!!

'It is a shame our current elected officials can't convince our nitwit Food Stamp President of the benefits of the Works Progress Administration. The folks could get busy clearing brush and palmetto's for the National Elephant Center and then assist with construction. It could be finished in record time, far short of it's estimated cost then given the same advantage's and tax benefits as TES and PAWS.'

Vintage Monkey Islands--Denver Zoo

2009

1939

Monkey Island was originally built as a WPA project in 1936. It was rehabilitated in 1950. It is surrounded by a moat that also houses some aquatic birds in the summer. The moat is drained in the winter and the monkeys are housed in the Monkey House which was the original primate exhibit at the zoo.

Vintage Monkey Islands-Fejervary Zoo/Mother Goose Land

1990 New Monkey Island which became Cougar Island housing 4 cougars.

Year unknown. Those don't look like Rhesus monkeys to me?

1960


Built in 1928, 70 Rhesus monkey were initially installed. Then monkeys wintered in dens under the island. It was closed in 1978 after USDA issues, and reconstruction was undertaken in 1981. The island was completely demolished and redeveloped using a "new" technique of an artificial rock landscape. The redone island displayed a natural setting for the Rhesus monkeys, and instead of being housed under the island, they were now housed in a building that was connected to the island on the east side of Monkey Island. In the early 90's Monkey Island became Cougar Island.

Vintage Monkey Islands--Sanford(Now Central Florida)Zoo





1939

Vintage Monkey Islands--Michigan City Zoo

1951

The Washington Park Zoo Monkey Island is closed indefinitely due to deterioration of the exhibit. After 80 years of operation the exhibit is considered no longer safe to exhibit monkeys or to be serviced by zoo employees. Monkey Island will be closed until further notice and will eventually be restored after a major renovation takes place. The zoo has plans to design a new modern monkey island exhibit and will unveil those once they have been set.



1938 Engineer's Castle on the left. It is now the Small Mammal Building

Completed by the Works Progress Administration in 1937, this interesting castle is on the grounds of the Washington Park Zoo, Michigan City, Indiana. The 309th Engineer Regiment, 84th Division, a World War I unit, placed a plaque on the building. It reads: "In grateful appreciation to the people of Michigan City for having erected this Engineer Castle, for over one hundred years the official insignia of the Corps of Engineers United States Army."


1940

Sept. 26,2011

A major renovation is planned for Monkey Island -- a longtime popular attraction at the zoo in Michigan City.

The zoo is hosting a public meeting today to reveal ideas for renovating Monkey Island, which closed in July.

Washington Park Zoo Director Johnny Martinez said the circular concrete island, built four years after the zoo opened in 1928, was closed in July for safety reasons.

The primary concern is a 52-foot long underground tunnel used by zoo employees to access the island to feed and care for the monkeys.

Martinez said the rock and concrete tunnel is crumbling and creates some risk of collapse.

"It's starting to show its age," Martinez said.

Nothing is official, but one of the improvements on the drawing board is cutting 8-foot sections out of the four-foot-tall concrete wall surrounding the island, he said.

Glass would be inserted into the cutouts so people using wheelchairs and strollers can see into the island.

There's also talk of erecting a two-story structure with the lower level on the floor of the concrete island.

Martinez said zookeepers could walk directly into the second floor of the structure from the walkway above the island then step onto the island from the basement or main level of the building.

Providing zookeepers a way to the island from the building would allow for the access tunnel to be permanently closed.

The addition of animals like parrots and swans native to South America to join the monkeys on the island is also in the planning stages, Martinez said.



Vintage Monkey Islands--Como Park Zoo





Como Zoo's monkey island used to serve as a habitat for monkeys of the Macaque, Guenon and Capuchin families, as well as raccoons until the 1950's when it became "seal island." It was built in 1932 by the WPA(Works Progress Administration)

Vintage Monkey Islands--Birmingham Zoo

2009



This was the first exhibit to be opened in the new zoo property in Lane Park in 1955

Vintage Monkey Islands--Mesker Park Zoo






Built in the 1930s to house monkeys, this one-third scale replica of the Santa Maria(Columbus' flagship) is now the center of a bumper boat ride at Mesker Park Zoo

Vintage Monkey Islands--Independance Zoo

2010

1940




This rhesus monkey exhibit was constructed in 1932. It's historical significance is that it was the home of the first non-communist monkey in space. Launched on May 28, 1959, Miss Able returned safely to earth but died soon after during surgery to remove implanted electrodes.

The Sparrow 40 Horse Hitch

For PK--Elephant Transports

1971

1971

1953

1953 to 1971, 18 years and nothing changed. That's wrong, and it was condoned for way, way too long.

The First "Canned Hunt?"