PHOTOS: What the Fort Worth Zoo looked like when great-grandma visited as a kid
Matt Leclercq
·2 min read
Fort Worth Zoo has entertained six generations since it was founded in 1909, but your great-great grandma who visited as a kid wouldn’t recognize a thing today.
What was then called Forest Park Zoo has evolved over the decades into a world-class, conservation-focused zoo that attracts 1 million visitors a year.
We dug up dozens photos from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram archive that show what the zoo looked like in the 1930s-1950s. It was a very different place — back then, entertainment included dressing up the performing chimps like people and letting kids pet the elephants. You’ll see more cages in these photos, which was common for zoos of the era. The zoo was run by the city, and like all city parks at the time, it was also segregated, which is why you’ll see few if any Black people in these photos. Until the 1950s, Black people were allowed to visit only on Juneteenth.
In recent decades, tens of millions of dollars have been spent to build more natural habitats and promote conservation of endangered animals.
The Fort Worth Zoo’s newest habitat is now open as of June 2023 — Predators of Asia and Africa. You can see lions, leopards, cheetahs, African painted dogs and two Sumatran tigers in stunning, immersive habitats that let you get up close. The expansion is phase three of A Wilder Vision, the zoo’s $130 million capital campaign that built the African Savanna and Elephant Springs habitats since 2018.
Now, take a trip back in time with these photos of the former Forest Park Zoo. Perhaps you’ll spot grandma in the crowds of happy schoolkids.
August 1941: With the summer season winding down, the Forest Park Zoo and amusement park remain one the most popular attractions in Fort Worth. Pictured is the view across the amusement grounds. Adults are enjoying the shade from the trees as they wait for their children on the rides. There is a ticket counter in the middle of the concourse and a Merry-go-round in the background. The parking lot is in the back left of the photograph.
July 1, 1939: At Fort Worth’s Forest Park Zoo, Bess Stephenson of the Star-Telegram interviews “Annabella Panzee,” the new chimpanzee from the zoo.
Aug. 27, 1940: “Children crowd around the pen at the Forest Park Zoo in Fort Worth to meet the new baby elephant, nicknamed “Cutie Pie.” Most of the children were from the Lena Pope Home and were having a party at the zoo. Cutie Pie’s apparent smile and uplifted trunk matched the children’s excitement.”
Jan. 30, 1942: The new monkey house at Forest Park Zoo was completed and occupied last week. It has open playrooms and steam-heated shelters. Outside the playroom are swings and other “rides” for Alex and Ike, two baboons at the zoo.
April 2, 1952: The largest crowd of the year turned out at Forest Park Zoo and caused this jam around the chimpanzee cage. Cars were bumper-to-bumper waiting to get into the parking lot off Forest Park Drive. Parking space was practically non-existent in the zoo area.
April 2, 1952: The largest crowd of the year turned out at Forest Park Zoo. Cars were bumper-to-bumper waiting to get into the parking lot off Forest Park Drive.
August 1941: Exploring the Forest Park Zoo’s carnival grounds are, from left, twins Lanelle and Lounette Wyatt. They are the 4-year-old daughters of Mr. and Mrs. W.W. Wright.
Jan. 25, 1943: A group of people are gathered around the alligator pool at the Forest Park Zoo as they enjoy the reprieve from cold weather. A few alligators can be seen lounging on rocks.
August 1941: “With the summer season nearing an end, the Forest Park Zoo remains one of the most popular destinations in Fort Worth. In the carnival section of the park, children are riding the Ferris Wheel as they get an overhead view of the zoo.”
June 20, 1953: Youngers in the children’s zoo at Fort Worth’s Forest Park Zoo watching ducks swim.
1942: Forest Park Zoo celebrated the 23rd birthday of Queen Tut. She and baby elephant Penny received guests all day. Queen Tut became a local celebrity and her birthday was celebrated in August each year, with up to 20,000 people attending these parties.
Aug. 5, 1941: One of the Forest Park Zoo’s new animal actors is “David,” a pigtailed monkey. He won the cheers of the crowd and his trainer Gilmore Fry with a patriotic wire act. David is holding two American flags, one in is mouth, and a case with the picture of a ship. He is wearing a hat and trousers as he balances on a pole.
Aug. 16, 1940: “The Forest Park Zoo in Fort Worth’s new baby elephant doesn’t yet have a permanent name. Until then, most people are calling her ‘Cutie Pie.’ She is getting acquainted with the zookeepers and the other animals. L.N. Williams, assistant at the zoo, is astride the baby elephant, as she is greeted by Queen Tut. Assistant zookeeper Julian Frazier looks on. The elephants are ‘shaking’ trunks through the bars as they joyfully greet each other for the first time.
June 29, 1937: Hamilton Hittson, zookeeper of the Fort Worth Forest Park Zoo, with a tiny fawn.
Oct. 8, 1946: “Pokey,” an unusual almost-white skunk is pictured here. Pokey is shown on Forest Park Zoo director Hamilton Hittson’s desk contemplating the mystery of the telephone. The pet was given to the zoo by Mr. and Mrs. Robert C. Humphrey of Dallas.
Feb. 21, 1940: “Annabella Panzee received a makeover before spring comes to the Forest Park Zoo in Fort Worth. Posed in the ‘before’ photograph, Annabella is turning in the overalls she’s been wearing for ladylike frills. Come springtime, she’ll be the zoo’s best dressed lady.”
Aug. 17, 1940: “The Forest Park Zoo in Fort Worth’s newest baby elephant doesn’t yet have a permanent name. Until then, most people are calling her “Cutie Pie.” She has two new friends as the young ladies feed her cake. The smaller girl is Alice Ann Grove. The older girl is Sara Ann Hyde. When Sara was younger, she fed cake to the zoo’s older elephant, Queen Tut, when the elephant was no bigger than Cutie Pie. It was those fond memories that led Sara to start the baby elephant fund.”
Aug. 17, 1940: The Forest Park Zoo celebrated the birthday of its elephant, “Queen Tut.”
April 7, 1945: The Forest Park Zoo and amusement park opened their spring season to a large crowd. Jeanette Gibson, 3, enjoyed her day at the zoo. She is the daughter of Flight Officer and Mrs. J.L. Gibson. She is laughing as she rides “Prancing Beauty” on the merry-go-round. Flight Officer Gibson is station at Langley, Virginia.
July 1, 1950: Forest Park Zoo’s camel, Moslah, inspects the trailer in which zoo director Hamilton “Ham” Hittson will bring the future Mrs. Moslah from California. Left to right are Hittson, Marvin Mabry, potentate of Moslah Temple Shrine and Al Wooten. The Shrine donated Moslah to the zoo and also is donating his bride.
Aug. 9, 1939: Forest Park Zoo chimpanzee Patsy in a wedding dress.
June 2, 1951: From left, Tommy Lipscomb, John Taylor and Jack Greenman find out in close quarters what anteaters really eat at the Forest Park Zoo in Fort Worth.
Aug. 12, 1938: Birthday cake for Queen Tut, Forest Park Zoo’s 18-year-old elephant; lighting candles is zookeeper Hamilton Hittson, and Byron Buckeridge, the zoo’s educational director, cuts the cake.
Aug. 12, 1939: At Fort Worth’s Forest Park Zoo, young children wait to get a piece of the elephant Queen Tut’s birthday cake when she turned 19.
Sept. 7, 1947: Queen Tut, zoo elephant, obligingly receives offerings of bread and peanuts from her public Sunday, when an open house was held at Forest Park Zoo in honor of her 28th birthday. Penny, her undersized stablemate, wistfully thrusts out her trunk for a share of the day’s proceeds.
Aug. 10, 1942: The Forest Park Zoo has a new elephant house to be occupied by “Queen Tut” and “Penny”. The house was a joint birthday present to Queen Tut and baby elephant Penny. It’s a new and modern elephant duplex, designed to bring all the latest conveniences to the elephants.
April 3, 1947: Decatur fifth-graders swarmed over Forest Park Zoo in happy abandon. Thursday was “Decatur Day” at the zoo. Teacher, Miss Bell Ford, brought fifth-grade students on a field trip. From left: Wilton Van Mabry, Cameron Milligan, James Ford, Kenneth Lambert and Kenneth Watson.
Aug. 17, 1940: The Forest Park Zoo celebrated the birthday of their elephant, “Queen Tut.” Two people dressed as clowns are participating in birthday celebration.
May 1953: Movie Star Jimmy Stewart, right, visiting Fort Worth took time out to visit another star, Marilyn Monroe, Forest Park Zoo’s new rhinoceros. Stewart, a member of the zoological board here, was accompanied on his zoo tour by F. Kirk Johnson, left, board president and Ham Hittson, park department director.
August 1941: Droves of people came to the Forest Park Zoo to see the trained animal show. Gilmore Fry’s troupe of animal actors put on their show to goggle-eyed and delighted audiences. In the show are “Buck,” the baboon, “David,” the pigtail monkey, and “Woodrow Wilson,” the spider monkey.
March 2, 1940: Strange playmates at the Forest Park Zoo are “Pedro,” the pup and “Sammie,” the lion. The animals grew up together in the home of Mrs. Willard Price and remain friends now, even at mealtime. The little fellows nursed out of the same bottle and gnaw off the same bone now that they are 7 months old.
May 5, 1947: “Bluebonnet Belle,” a baby hippopotamus bought for Forest Park Zoo last spring through a Star-Telegram fund, enjoys the poem sent in an entry to the Sons and Daughters of the Ark Fund. Pictured is Zoo Director Hamilton Hittson, who is turning the pages of an illustrated booklet as the hippopotamus looks on.
April 3, 1947: It was “Decatur Day” at Forest Park Zoo on Thursday. Decatur school teacher, Miss Bell Ford, brought a group of fifth-graders on a field trip to enjoy the day. Miss Ford is shown setting up a picnic lunch underneath the trees. On the table are sandwiches, fruit, and pickles.
April 8, 1951: Wayne John, son of Mr. and Mrs. R.E. John of 105 W. Mason, takes time out to enjoy a cotton candy stick and get some rest. Between 10,000 to 12,000 persons visited the Forest Park Zoo during the day.
Aug. 21, 1947: “Harry Jackson, supervisor of the Forest Park Zoo reptile garden, wears Hopi regalia, lifts a writhing bundle of snakes skyward and asks for rain -- and got immediate results.”
April 7, 1945: The Forest Park Zoo opened Sunday to a big crowd, proving that the thrill of visiting the Zoo never wanes. Pictured is part of the crowd in the amusement park section of the park. They are enjoying the shade from several large trees. An airplane merry-go-round is on the back left.
May 21, 1951: It took seven men to unload the 17-foot python from Thailand, Siam, that arrived by air at the Forrest Park Zoo. Harry Jackson, operator of the zoo’s reptile exhibit, is shown on the left, holding the snake’s head while Zookeeper Hittson and five assistants follow behind, carrying the rest of the snake.
July 3, 1951: Features of the new giraffe house under construction at Forest Park Zoo in Fort Worth are pointed out by Director Ham Hittson to a trio of young visitors. Left to right are Gregory Reynolds, Ann Morrow, 4, and her sister, Lucille, 6.
June 2, 1951: Doing their bit to bring two giraffes to Forest Park Zoo, Jeanie Vedder, 3, Tommy Ray, 8, and Ruth Vedder, 7, drop dimes in donation box at Parkway Theater. Bud Sweeney, left, and Robert Hunter of Boy Scout Troop 32 manned the box. Other scouts were on duty with donation boxes at six other theaters.
June 17, 1953: Phillip and Reagan Sharp at Fort Worth’s Forest Park Zoo
April 3, 1950: “A new arrival from Africa, by way of New York and Colorado, is the poised cheetah shown in the image with F. Kirk Johnson Jr., who brought the animal to Fort Worth. The feline is a gift to the Forest Park Zoo from F. Kirk Johnson Sr., president of the Fort Worth Zoological Society.”
May 5, 1958: “A cheetah at Forest Park Zoo is treated like a dog ... all because a mountain lion is pregnant. The cheetah lived in the next cage to the mountain lions, but the cheetah became displaced cat when the male lion was given the cheetah’s cage to pace in.”
March 8, 1950: “No hillbilly fan, director Ham Hittson pipes a classical cantata over the Forest Park Zoo network.”
June 20, 1953: Six-year-old Kim Gottlieb points at the list of donors who helped bring to life the scenes of the nursery rhymes at Forest Park’s Children’s Zoo. The present plaque will be replaced with a bronze one. Kim is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Seymour Gottlieb.
March 19, 1953: Danna, 4, and Tom Turner, 5, get a first look at the little red schoolhouse at Children’s Zoo at Forest Park in Fort Worth.
Jan. 25, 1959: Reptile house plan at Forest Park Zoo, Manuel King, left, Lawrence Curtis.
June 17, 1953: Jackie Ray Hammick at Fort Worth’s Forest Park Zoo
July 14, 1939: “The Fort Worth’s Forest Park Zoo’s bird woman, Mrs. J. Wilard Price, feeds a mixture of beef bouillon, baby food, condensed milk, honey and water to one of the zoo’s hummingbirds.”
April 7, 1945: The Forest Park Zoo opened Sunday to a big crowd. Enjoying his visit was blonde-haired, blue-eyed Lynn Curtis Bender. The 2-year-old fellow rubs his tired eyes as he sits with his father, Sgt. William J. Bender, on a bench. The Benders are natives of Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Sunday was their first visit to the Forest Park Zoo.
June 10, 1950: Merle Ann, 5, and David Conoley, 6, of Amarillo, were advance customers at the new souvenir stand in Forest Park Zoo. Zoo director Hamilson “Ham” Hittson is shown behind the counter.
April 15, 1942: “Two of the cubs born to Forest Park Zoo lioness, Ginger, have found new homes. They are shown with their new owners, from left: Lt. H.F. Webster, Mrs. Webster, and Lt W.N. Hawkes. The men are Navy officers attached to the American Airlines training school at the Municipal Airport. They’ll keep the cubs at the Worth Hotel, where they are staying while in town. Once they are older, the cubs will be given to a zoo.”
MORE: Check out other historic photos from the Star-Telegram archives here, including:
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