Philadelphia Zoological Gardens, 3400 West Girard Avenue, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, PA

See also HABS PA-1662 & PA-1663 for other Zoological Gardens documentation.
See also field notes for HABS PA-6211 for additional documentation. Additional documentation includes photographs & drawings.
Significance: The Zoological Society of Philadelphia was incorporated in 1859, making it the oldest organization of its kind in the United States. It opened its garden to the public on July 1, 1874. The grounds have undergone constant change and renovation over the last 120 ears as the zoo adopts more progressive designs. Nevertheless, the contemporary landscape is a revealing document of zoo history, of the 19th century American park movement, and of colonial Philadelphia.
Present within its confines are an 18th century house built by John Penn, grandson to Pennsylvania's founder, William Penn; rustic architecture and landscape features from the original 19th century design scheme by Hermann Joseph Schwarzmann, engineer of the Fairmount Park Commission and architect of the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition of 1876; and animal quarters dating from the 1870s to the 1990s by many of Philadelphia's most influential architects including Frank Furness, George Hewitt, Paul Cret, and Robert Venturi.
The zoo contains a living record not only of the fauna of the world but of the evolution of America's perceptions of nature. The buildings, like the landscape, record the evolution of zoo designs and the concomitant changing attitudes towards wildlife.
Unprocessed Field note material exists for this structure: N336
Survey number: HABS PA-6211
Building/structure dates: 1873- 1874 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1930 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1931 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1941 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1903 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1913 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1896 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1907 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1916 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1905 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1888 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1912 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1938 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1948-1951 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1936 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1948-1954 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1967 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1970 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1973-1975 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1987 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1982 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1985 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1996 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1994 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1876 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1882 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1978 Demolished
Building/structure dates: 1987 Demolished
Building/structure dates: 1938 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1957 Subsequent Work
National Register of Historic Places NRIS Number: 72001151