Zoo Postcards From Another Era

These photographs are from a series of Milwaukee County Zoo postcards dated from 1963. The gorilla, tigers, and jaguar mother and four cubs pictures show what was then the state of the art in zoo design.

At that time, science and the concept of asepsis and cleanliness became paramount. Animals were literally removed from the natural element and housed in glass, steel, and tile boxes that could easily be cleaned and sterilized. Social needs were ignored, such as primates being kept in isolation. Taxonomic groups (the primate building, the cats of the world, the bird house) displayed similar animals side-by-side to educate the public about the variety and diversity of animals worldwide.

But, as people became more sophisticated, zoos evolved to present the animal in nature, in a "habitat." Attempts were made to mimic the actual environment. The tile bathrooms became a failed experiment that led to unnatural behaviors and that the guests found cold and confining.

The lowland gorilla by the way, is Samson, a huge male, the most famous animal in the zoo's history, who lived at the Milwaukee County Zoo from 1950 to his death in 1981. He was known for his mesmerizing stare and surprise attacks on the glass front, which he cracked four times.