THIS WEEK IN MICHIGAN HISTORY
Detroit Zoological Park opened in 1928
BY Zlati Meyer • July 26, 2009
It was the first zoo to use moats to separate the animals from visitors.
However, the designers may have had second thoughts on opening day -- Aug. 1 -- when a polar bear named Morris jumped over the divider to greet acting Detroit Mayor John Nagel personally.
More than 120,000 people visited the first Sunday the zoo was open, Aug. 5.
The menagerie at 10 Mile and Woodward in Royal Oak made history again 76 years later in 2004, when it became the first major zoo to retire its elephants exclusively for ethical reasons. Winky and Wanda moved to a pachyderm sanctuary in California.
Today, the 125-acre zoo has more than 1,500 animals of 260 species and a staff of 215.
http://www.freep.com/article/20090726/NEWS06/907260468/1008/NEWS06/Detroit-Zoological-Park-opened-in-1928
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