The Topeka Zoo, through its ups and downs, has been entertaining generations for 80 years.
The history of the zoo is rich.
In 1899, Gullford G. Gage left 80 acres to the city for Gage Park upon his death. While the first animals arrived at the park in 1912, the zoo wasn’t official until 1933.
“Our zoo, like many municipal zoos, initially just happened,” said Gary Clarke, who served as the zoo’s first director from Oct. 1, 1963, until Dec. 31, 1989.
Gage Park was home to monkeys, alligators and a bison named Joshua as early as 1912, according to previous Topeka Capital-Journal articles. In 1921, a herd of bison was added.
“It was just natural that this became a zoo in 1933,” said Rick Knight, a horticulturist at the zoo who collects historic facts, photos and more about the zoo.
Monkey Island was built by the Works Progress Administration in 1933.
“That was considered the establishment date for the zoo,” Clarke said.
Monkey Island was a display including a miniature city hall building. Many people remember Monkey Island, said Brendan Wiley, current zoo director.
“Today, we have 300 animals in our collection,” Wiley said.
In 1951, the Gage Park greenhouse was converted into a monkey house, and in 1957, Preston Hale, commissioner of parks and public property, had feline houses built at a cost of $850 each. In 1960, Hale had bear units built.
John Goodin, who served two terms as Topeka parks commissioner in the 1960s, had Clarke tour the zoo to see if he would be interested in working there.
“It needed a lot of attention,” Clarke said. “Within the zoo profession, it was not highly regarded. I was only 24 years old, and I was certainly no expert on anything.”
Colleagues told Clarke, who was working as a curator at the Fort Worth Zoo, that accepting a job at the Topeka Zoo would “be professional suicide.”
“I liked Topeka,” said Clarke, who was born in Wichita. “It wasn’t that I disliked the zoo. Actually, it looked like it had some potential.”
Clarke accepted a position and told his boss, “I’ll take care of the zoo in the park, if you take care of the zoo in City Hall.”
The Topeka Friends of the Zoo was established by Clarke in 1964, enabling the community to become even more involved with the zoo, Clarke said. Kate Larison is the current executive director of Topeka FOTZ.
The Topeka Zoo has experienced a lot of firsts, Clarke and Wiley said.
Sunflower became the first giraffe to be born in Kansas, and the tropical rainforest received a prestigious award.
In 1966, the zoo purchased 17 animals, including a hippo, giraffe, hydrax, mandrills, rehas and Debraza monkeys through the campaign “Operation Noah’s Ark.” In 1971, the zoo had the first hatching and rearing of an American golden eagle. And most recently, the zoo received worldwide attention because of a baby giraffe named Hope who underwent a groundbreaking procedure to help save her life.
“This community is the one who built the zoo,” Clarke said. “I was just the cheerleader.”
The zoo became known as The World Famous Topeka Zoo after it captured attention with headlines all over the world. There was a hippo who was dubbed the Hesitant Hippo after she refused to enter her crate at the Kansas City Zoo to be transported to Topeka, according to Clarke’s book, “Hey Mister — Your Alligators Loose!” There also was the international story about the orangutan artist, Djakarta Jim, who won a statewide art contest.
After those stories, Clarke told his secretary to answer the phone “World Famous Topeka Zoo.” The first caller explained that the zoo was famous because a family member living in Colorado had heard about it.
The name stuck.
“I thought, ‘Why not?’ ” Clarke said. “It caught on as a point of pride within the community.”
While the zoo has experienced several firsts and has a rich history, it also underwent some scrutiny from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, which serves as an accrediting body for zoos and aquariums and ensures that accredited facilities meet higher standards of animal care than are required by law.
The Topeka Zoo was stripped of its accreditation in 2001 but retained it in 2003. It was reaccredited for five years in 2007. Amid controversy over animal deaths and the Topeka Zoo’s failure to comply with federal rules, Topeka’s municipal government asked the AZA to inspect the zoo in 2009. Inspectors found problems that included a lack of trust in management and misleading statements from the senior staff.
The turmoil led to the resignation of zoo director Mike Coker in December 2009. Wiley was hired as zoo director in May 2010 with the mission of setting the zoo back on course.
The AZA accreditation commission in March 2010 considered revoking the Topeka Zoo’s accreditation but tabled a decision, allowing the zoo to hold onto its accreditation. AZA inspectors then examined the zoo’s operations again in January 2011. The inspection led to the AZA’s decision to restore the zoo’s accreditation to full status in March 2011.
“We are still working through it,” Wiley said. “We have worked very hard to point it in the right direction.”
Clarke added: “There always has been a good rapport between the zoo and the community. We are a community zoo. It is their zoo. They know the animals by name. We have a lot of animals at this zoo that have lived a long time. What is done at the zoo is done for the community. As far as the future, I can say that with the surging spirt that Brendan has generated in the community, I think the future is bright.”
“We have a bright future for a giraffe named Hope,” he said.