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Article: Zoo first drew crowds 90 years ago
- Article from:
- The Topeka Capital-Journal
- Article date:
- June 13, 2004
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2004 The Topeka Capital-Journal. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Gage Park has had animals on display almost since its beginnings.
While Topeka's earliest zoo mostly featured creatures native to
North America, it also had some of the more exotic.
A story in the Topeka State Journal on March 8, 1913, described
the zoo population as including deer, coyotes, foxes, a porcupine and
a raccoon that liked to search visitors' pockets.
Seven buffalo had 7 acres upon which to roam, and waterfowl from
ducks to swans made their homes in Gage Park.
A cinnamon bear, a black bear and a bobcat were all displayed in
cages or otherwise restrained. A photograph from 1923 shows the black
bear chained to a dead tree.
The more unusual inhabitants had unusual quarters, too. The ...