This post was written by Helen Vivas, who was the WCS Library and Archives’ Photo Collection Management Intern for Fall 2023. Helen is completing her Bachelor’s of Arts, in history and film studies, from CUNY Queens College. Children’s Zoo, July 31, 1941. WCS Photo Collection 18841. When the Children’s Zoo opened to the public in 1941, the War in Europe was already disrupting people’s lives in the U.S. As the country entered World War II at year’s end everyone had to make sacrifices, including education and recreation outside of schools. An area at the Bronx Zoo specifically for children ..read more

We are pleased to share the results of a Conservation Treatment Grant we received from the Greater Hudson Heritage Network.  With this funding, we have been able to secure conservation treatment for a painting in our collection that holds historical, aesthetic, and cultural significance: Whooping Cranes on their Breeding Grounds in Saskatchewan, done in 1922 by the New York ornithologist and artist Louis Agassiz Fuertes and purchased from the artist in 1923 by the Wildlife Conservation Society for its artwork collection.  Conservator Nadia Ghannam p ..read more

William Conway on the Bronx Zoo’s Astor Court, circa 1990; and William Conway with ducklings at the Bronx Zoo, 1958. © Wildlife Conservation Society We were saddened by the death last week of William Conway, who began his career at WCS as an assistant ornithology curator in 1956 and retired as its president in 1999. Dr. Conway is undoubtedly among the most pivotal figures in WCS’s history and in modern zoo and aquarium history. We will be reflecting on his legacy in the coming months, but for now, the WCS Archives is remembering the grit and the grace Dr. Conway brought to saving wildlife ..read more

This June we celebrate the multifaceted nature of all life around us. As the archival record shows, science is constantly evolving.  As we continue learning about the diversity of animal, plant, and human relationships and identities, the stronger and more resilient our scientific communities, and thus, our world, will become. View on Instagram ..read more

The Zoo Shuttle at the Bronx Zoo has been helping visitors get around and see the zoo since 1940. It started as a way to “to insure the happiness and comfort of the visitor” by allowing everyone by allowing everyone, of all abilities, to experience the 265-acre park. In the 1960s the Education Department wrote lectures that were given on the shuttle, and it became referred to as the “Tiger Train.” This photo shows the Zoo Shuttle making its way through Fountain Circle in the 1950s. View on Instagram ..read more

Since January, I have been interning at the WCS Library & Archives as part of the Moving Image Archiving and Preservation program at NYU. I worked with the WCS film collection inventory to prepare records for online access. As with most things this last year, it was a somewhat strange experience, since I worked remotely despite living just a few miles from the Bronx Zoo. But working virtually allowed me to use part of my brain that doesn’t get much attention: my imagination. I had to imagine what “Gorilla dental treatment” or “Penguin House opening” might look like. Doing so allowed me to ..read more

William Bridges and Lucy Ouzoonion, circa 1950s. Today in the WCS Archives we pay tribute to WCS’s Administrative Professionals, past and present.  In fact, without our Administrative Professionals, we would not have an archives.  For in their everyday roles, it is these staff members who have recorded, organized, saved, managed—and sometimes even decoded—the records that are WCS’s archives today. Coded telegram written to William Hornaday and decoded by his secretary, Edith Franz. WCS Archives Collection 1001. We were so pleased to be gifted the photo above recently of one of these ..read more

These are some of the original labels that were used on the exhibits at the New York Aquarium when it was located at Castle Clinton in Battery Park. According to the then director of the Aquarium, Charles H. Townsend, the information on the labels reflected the questions most often posed by visitors including geographic distribution, abundance, size, commercial value, and importance as game. This post is part of our series through the year to celebrate the New York Aquarium’s 125th Anniversary. View post on Instagram ..read more

An arctic fox for this wintry week from our Bronx Zoo Postcard Collection, circa 1920-1940. View the post on Instagram, and view the collection here ..read more

This year, the New York Aquarium is celebrating 125 years of connecting people to the marine world. Established originally at Battery Park (pictured in this 1931 postcard) in 1896 by New York City, the aquarium transferred to the WCS’s management in 1902 following the successful opening of the Bronx Zoo. In 1957, it moved to its current home in Coney Island. To celebrate its 125 years of having been a leader in marine conservation science as well as a beloved attraction for NYC locals and tourists alike, the WCS Archives will be highlighting the history of the aquarium throughout the year ..read more