Milwaukee County Zoological Gardens

The Milwaukee County Zoo is a serene home to more than 2,200 mammals, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles with more than 320 species represented. However, the Zoo has become more than that to visitors. It is a site for workshops, holiday celebrations, summer concerts and food festivals.

Recognized as one of the country’s finest zoological attractions, the Milwaukee County Zoo serves as a resource to educate, entertain and inspire.

The wildness began in 1892 when the Milwaukee County Zoo was a simple miniature mammal and bird display in Milwaukee's downtown Washington Park. By 1902, the Zoo expanded to 23 acres and had acquired a roaring 800 animals. Thirty-two years later, the Zoo became an entity of the Milwaukee County Park Commission. The arrangement gave the Zoo the resources it needed to grow and prosper. The chance to grow surfaced in 1958 when the Zoo moved to its present location on 200 acres of beautiful parkland where currently over 320 species of animals are on exhibit.

The first decade at the Zoo's new location saw several developments: the Primate Building, Monkey Island and Winter Quarters construction. In the early 1960s, Grizzly, Polar and Brown Bear dens were completed, as were the Feline, Pachyderm, Giraffe, Bird, Small Mammals, Aquarium/Reptile, and Australian Buildings. In the 1970s, the Zoo continued to grow: the Children's Zoo, Train Shed, and Zoo Hospital were constructed. The Dall Sheep Exhibit, the Gift Shop and Zoo Pride also were established during this decade of expansion.