Large Bird House, 1911. Constructed in 1905 and designed by Heins & La Farge (the designers of the original IRT subway stations), the Large Bird House is a neo-classical structure of limestone, brick, and terra cotta. The sculpture and reliefs on the building, including the life-size eagle over the door were created by Alexander P. Proctor. Proctor, a prolific sculptor, also created pieces for three other zoo buildings, and was the artist behind the three pumas that watch over the Third Street entrance to Prospect Park. The building originally housed more than 1500 avian specimens.

The Bronx Zoo’s creation was one of the founding objectives of the Wildlife Conservation Society, which began in 1895 as the New York Zoological Society. The zoo opened to the public on November 8, 1899 and was immediately popular: within ten years it had welcomed nearly four million visitors, and it has remained one of New York City’s cultural icons. In addition to opening a world-class zoo for NYC, WCS was founded to promote the study of zoology and to preserve wildlife in an era when the human impact on nature was increasingly evident. While aspects of those founding objectives have evolved over time, WCS remains committed to saving wildlife and wild places worldwide today through science, conservation action, education, and inspiring people to value nature. Much about the Bronx Zoo today would be unrecognizable to its first visitors, yet important early features remain—from original structures and an ongoing emphasis on the location’s natural beauty, to its continued focus on fulfilling WCS’s mission. Since its opening, the Bronx Zoo has been a leader in wildlife conservation, education, exhibitry, and husbandry. Together with WCS’s other three NYC zoos and its New York Aquarium, the Bronx Zoo has educated and inspired more than 400 million visitors, including about a half-million students annually. Today the Bronx Zoo is the Bronx’s largest youth employer, providing opportunity in one of the most underserved communities in the nation. The Bronx Zoo also is the subject of the Animal Planet docuseries THE ZOO. This tour explores how the early Bronx Zoo embodied WCS’s founding goals and how the evolution of these goals has shaped the park. The tour’s creation was funded by a 2019 Metropolitan Library Council of New York’s User Engagement with Digital Collections grant. This grant is aimed at expanding usage of existing WCS Archives digital collections hosted on METRO’s Digital Culture of Metropolitan New York platform.

The Bronx Zoo was founded by the Wildlife Conservation Society in 1899. Since its inception, it has dedicated itself to the conservation of the natural world - displaying 6,000 animals across 256 acres in replicated habitats.

Elephant House interior ca. 1940 The architectural heart of the Bronx Zoo is Astor Court, a group of Beaux-Arts pavilions designed by Heins & La Farge. The principal building, originally called the Elephant House, is structured as a series of Guastavino vaults crowned by a two-tiered dome covering a central rotunda. The shallow inner dome features a distinctive herringbone tile pattern pierced by a ring of circular skylights. Polychrome tiles initially finished the tall outer dome, later re-clad in metal.

Bronx Zoo Built 1899-1910; Heins & La Farge, architects; Harold A. Caparn; landscape architect. Sculptural decoration by Eli Harvey, Charles R. Knight, and Alexander Phimister Proctor. National Collection of Heads and Horns (now Security, Education and International Conservation Offices). Built 1922; Founded 1895, opened 1899 In 1884, Fordham University sold a large parcel of its campus to the City for use as a zoo and garden, known as Bronx Park. The property had historically been part of the Lorillard estate, whose snuff mill is still extant within the New York Botanical Garden. In 1888, the City allotted 250 of its acres to the New York Zoological Society, and in 1891, another 250 to the New York Botanical Society. The largest of the city’s five zoos, The Bronx Zoo is divided into northern and southern sections. The north is characterized by its formal layout, with Astor Court in the center, surrounded by Beaux Arts buildings, some of which are designated city landmarks. The landscape in the south is more naturalistic, with buildings ranging in style from Modern to Brutalist. This entry is the Asia Gate, which leads into a forest surrounding the Bronx River, with Asian wildlife displays.

Astor Court stands as one of the few intact ensembles in New York City realized according to City Beautiful ideals. It was designated a New York City Landmark in 2000. Zoo Center, once known as the Elephant House, is the Court's terminus. Originally known as Baird Court, the architects Heins and LaFarge designed it in consultation with early WCS officials. Its Beaux Arts style—marked by heavily ornamented buildings that reflected the animal inhabitants within—was influenced by the Court of Honor at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. While WCS’s leaders wanted the court’s refined style to reflect the society’s commitment to learning and culture, they were also dedicated to maintaining the natural landscape throughout the rest of the park. This distinct balance between built and natural environments is still evident at the Bronx Zoo today.

Elephant House, Bronx Zoo, ca. 1975. The Beaux-Arts Elephant House, completed in 1908 and now known as the Zoo Center, is the centerpiece of the Astor Court master plan designed by the Heins & La Farge firm. The elaborate structure features Guastavino tile and extensive terra cotta sculptural detail.

Situated at the north end of the Bronx Zoo, just south of East Fordham Road, the Rainey Gates were completed in 1934 as a memorial to noted big game hunter Paul James Rainey. The Art Deco bronze gates are the work of noted sculptor Paul Manship. They depict stylized animals including polar bears, elk, turtles at the base, and a single majestic seated lion at the very top.

As New York battles the Coronavirus pandemic this summer, city businesses and public spaces are re-opening in phases. While we await the call to reopen museums and other indoor cultural activities, Phase 4 will bring New Yorkers back into the zoos, botanical gardens, and key tourist attractions throughout the city like the Statue of Liberty and Empire State Building. Plus, professional sports will resume, though without fans in the stands.

The Rocking Stone is an example of a glacial erratic left stranded by the masses of ice during the last Ice Age. Even before the Bronx Zoo opened, the Rocking Stone was a popular attraction because, being perfectly balanced on a rocky drift, a small push would easily set it swaying. (Alas safety concerns have meant that the 30-ton stone has long since been swayable.)