Showing 294 items matching "zoo"
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Ithacan Historical SocietyPhotograph, Visit to Taronga Park Zoo, 16th July 1946
... Visit to Taronga Park Zoo...Photo taken at Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney during a trip by Victorian based Ithacans on 16th July 1946. ...Black & White scanned photograph of 8 people, 4 men and 2 women, standing in front of a cyclone wire fence at Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney. ...Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...Ithacan Historical Society Ithaca House 329 Elizabeth Street Melbourne melbourne Photo taken at Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney during a trip by Victorian based Ithacans on 16th July 1946. ...Photo taken at Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney during a trip by Victorian based Ithacans on 16th July 1946. Standing at back from left to right: N. Paizes (The Poet/ 'O Pioitis'), K. Dellaportas, Mihali Black (Mavrokefalos), Sia (Athanasia) Andrews, Anastasi?, Victoria Black (nee Raftopoulos) Kneeling in front from left to right: Hector Andrews, Peter KouvaliasBlack & White scanned photograph of 8 people, 4 men and 2 women, standing in front of a cyclone wire fence at Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney. -
Federation University Historical CollectionPhotograph - Photograph - Sepia, Giraffe in the Cairo Zoo, c1915
... Giraffe in the Cairo Zoo...Photograph of a giraffe behind a fencei n the Cairo Zoo during World War One. ...Verso 'A giraffe in the Cairo Zoo'....Giraffe in the Cairo Zoo Photograph Photograph - Sepia ...Most probably taken by Harry Holmes while serving with the AIF in Egypt during World War One.Photograph of a giraffe behind a fencei n the Cairo Zoo during World War One. Verso 'A giraffe in the Cairo Zoo'.chatham family archive, chatham, holmes, world war, world war 1, world war i, world war one, harry holmes, egypt, cairo, middle east -
Kew Historical Society IncLeisure object - Musical Toy, Rose Morris & Co Pty Ltd, Zinga Zoo, 1930-1950
... Zinga Zoo...Zinga Zoo - small plastic musical toy in a cardboard box....Exterior of box - "Zinga Zoo Regd. The Packet Band. An R.M. Precision moulded product by Rose Morris & Co.Ltd. ...London England" Plastic toy - "Zinga Zoo Regd. The "Pocket Band" RM&Co L79 London" Zinga Zoo - small plastic musical toy in a cardboard box. ...The Kew Historical Society’s collection includes a wide range of leisure objects. Many of the items are European-made, generally of British origin, however there are a number that were made for the Australian market by Australian manufacturers. There were clearly a huge range of toys produced for the Australian and International children’s market in the Nineteenth and Twentieth centuries. The examples of toys in the collection include examples of alphabet toys, arcade toys, baby toys, construction toys, dolls, doll accessories, educational toys, soft toys, tin toys, toy animals, toy blocks, toy machines, toy typewriters, etc. Zinga Zoo - small plastic musical toy in a cardboard box.Exterior of box - "Zinga Zoo Regd. The Packet Band. An R.M. Precision moulded product by Rose Morris & Co.Ltd. London England" Plastic toy - "Zinga Zoo Regd. The "Pocket Band" RM&Co L79 London"zinga zoo, rose morris & co., musical toys -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Werribee Open Range Zoo, c1989
... Werribee Open Range Zoo...The students from Bulla Primary School were taken on a school excursion to the Werribee Park Open Range Zoo. The trip was part of their environmental studies....Werribee Park Open Range Zoo, Werribee, Victoria, Australia...Werribee Open Range Zoo Photograph Bulla Primary School ...The students from Bulla Primary School were taken on a school excursion to the Werribee Park Open Range Zoo. The trip was part of their environmental studies.A non-digital coloured photograph of four deer beside a lake in a fenced off open area.bulla primary school, werribee park open range zoo, school excursions -
Greensborough Historical SocietyPhotograph - Digital image, Charles Marshall et al, Port Said Zoo, 1917-1918
... Port Said Zoo...This photograph shows a giraffe at the zoo at Port Said. ..."Zoo Port Said "...Greensborough Historical Society 34A Glenauburn Road Lower Plenty Lower Plenty melbourne This photograph shows a giraffe at the zoo at Port Said. charles marshall world war 1 "Zoo Port Said " Digital copy of black and white photograph. ...This photograph shows a giraffe at the zoo at Port Said. Digital copy of black and white photograph. "Zoo Port Said "charles marshall, world war 1 -
Kiewa Valley Historical SocietyPosters & Booklets - Primary Education Topics, ANZAC, Zoo Animals, Magic, Funfairs
... ANZAC, Zoo Animals, Magic, Funfairs...Reverse is colored with book advertisements. 1987 Eleven colored zoo animal pictures Primary Education Topics Booklets - Magic & Funfairs. ...Zoo poster: 'Vertical File'stamped on and 'Zoos' handwritten...Mt Beauty Primary School mt beauty primary school aids education themes / topics Zoo poster: 'Vertical File'stamped on and 'Zoos' handwritten ANZAC - Sepia pictures, black print. ...Primary Schools often use a theme of interest with curriculum based activities.Mt Beauty Primary SchoolANZAC - Sepia pictures, black print. Reverse is colored with book advertisements. 1987 Eleven colored zoo animal pictures Primary Education Topics Booklets - Magic & Funfairs. Magic (1) 1978 - has 8 b & w pages with illustrations Magic (2) Folds out to 4 activity sheets on 1 side & colored picture on reverse Fanfairs Booklet: Colored poster and activity b & w sheets enclosed and held by staples.Zoo poster: 'Vertical File'stamped on and 'Zoos' handwrittenmt beauty primary school aids, education, themes / topics -
University of Melbourne, Burnley Campus ArchivesDocument - Report, Kate Bodley (Melbourne Zoo), Addendum: Drug Formularly for Use With Zoo Animals and Australian Wildlife, 2000
... Addendum: Drug Formularly for Use With Zoo Animals and Australian Wildlife...Kate Bodley (Melbourne Zoo)...Addendum: Drug Formularly for Use With Zoo Animals and Australian Wildlife Document Report Kate Bodley (Melbourne Zoo) ...veterinary science, zoo animals, australian wildlife -
University of Melbourne, Burnley Campus ArchivesDocument - Report, Kate Bodley (Melbourne Zoo), Veterinary care and management of zoo animals and Australian wildlife, 2000
... Veterinary care and management of zoo animals and Australian wildlife...Kate Bodley (Melbourne Zoo)...University of Melbourne, Burnley Campus Archives 500 Yarra Boulevard Richmond melbourne veterinary science masters degree zoo animals australian wildlife Typed document. partial fulfilment for degree of Master of Veterinary Studies Veterinary care and management of zoo animals and Australian wildlife Document Report Kate Bodley (Melbourne Zoo) ...veterinary science, masters degree, zoo animals, australian wildlife -
Melbourne LegacyPhotograph, Holmbush excursion to the zoo, 194X
... Holmbush excursion to the zoo...Photo of an excursion to the Melbourne Zoo possibly in the 1940s. The matron is believed to be Dorothy Farmer, names of the children are not known but most appear in other photos from the photo album. ...Black and white photo of Matron and children at the Melbourne Zoo pasted to the page of an album....A compilation of photos of the matron and junior legatees in the Legacy residences. residences Holmbush matron Black and white photo of Matron and children at the Melbourne Zoo pasted to the page of an album. Holmbush excursion to the zoo Photograph ...Photo of an excursion to the Melbourne Zoo possibly in the 1940s. The matron is believed to be Dorothy Farmer, names of the children are not known but most appear in other photos from the photo album. From a photo album which contains photos of Holmbush and some of the excursions and events that happened there, appears to have been put together in the 1940s. Including trips to the zoo and picnics. Holmbush at 1267 Burke road, was one of the properties that Legacy used for Junior Legatees. It was purchased 1942. In 1957 Holmbush was renamed until it was sold in 1977.A compilation of photos of the matron and junior legatees in the Legacy residences.Black and white photo of Matron and children at the Melbourne Zoo pasted to the page of an album.residences, holmbush, matron -
Melbourne LegacyPhotograph, Holmbush excursion to the zoo, 194X
... Holmbush excursion to the zoo...Photo of an excursion to the Melbourne Zoo possibly in the 1940s. The matron and children are riding elephants. ...Black and white photo of Matron and children on elephants at the Melbourne Zoo pasted to the page of an album....Photo of an excursion to the Melbourne Zoo possibly in the 1940s. The matron and children are riding elephants. ...Photo of an excursion to the Melbourne Zoo possibly in the 1940s. The matron and children are riding elephants. The matron is believed to be Dorothy Farmer, names of the children are not known but most appear in other photos from the photo album. From a photo album which contains photos of Holmbush and some of the excursions and events that happened there, appears to have been put together in the 1940s. Including trips to the zoo and picnics. Holmbush at 1267 Burke road, was one of the properties that Legacy used for Junior Legatees. It was purchased 1942. In 1957 Holmbush was renamed until it was sold in 1977.A compilation of photos of the matron and junior legatees in the Legacy residences.Black and white photo of Matron and children on elephants at the Melbourne Zoo pasted to the page of an album.residences, holmbush, matron -
City of Melbourne LibrariesPhotograph, Bull, Hugh Jones, 1897-1993, Vice-regal visit to Zoo: Lord Huntingfield greets the King of the Beasts
... Vice-regal visit to Zoo: Lord Huntingfield greets the King of the Beasts...Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42" Published: The Age, Tuesday 26 June 1934, page 11. ...Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42"....Research by project volunteer, Fiona Collyer: Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. ...Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42" Published: The Age, Tuesday 26 June 1934, page 11. Published title: VICE-ROYALTY GREETS THE KING OF THE BEASTS AT THE ZOO. Published caption: “Lord Huntingfield experienced a pleasant “induction ceremony” as Patron of the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society yesterday, when he made a tour of the Zoological Gardens. The picture shows the Governor, accompanied by Lady Huntingfield, inspecting the King of the Beasts, who is submitting to a little playful treatment from the Director of the Gardens, Mr. Wilkie, while the Director whispers in his ear that a distinguished visitor has come to see him.” Trove article identifier: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204818472 Description: A man wearing a hat and suit strokes a caged lion, observed by a man in a hat, scarf and overcoat who is leaning on a walking stick, and a woman in a hat and coat, holding a handbag. They stand behind a protective rail. Research by project volunteer, Fiona Collyer: Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. He first worked as a horticultural assistant to Government botanist Baron Ferdinand von Mueller at the Botanical Gardens at the age of 13, along with his older brother David. One of Andrew’s jobs was to capture moths for the National Herbarium. In 1857, a group of prominent Melburnians assembled at St. Patrick’s Hall to form the Zoological Society of Victoria, with the aim of introducing animals and plants from overseas. It was conceived, “For the purposes of science and for that of affording the public the advantages of studying the habits of the animal creation in properly arranged zoological gardens.” The Victorian Government granted 32 acres (13 hectares) of land to the Zoological Society at the southern end of Richmond Paddock on the opposite bank to the Botanical Gardens. (This is where AAMI Stadium and Collingwood Football Club now stand.) In 1861, the Zoological Society of Victoria was renamed The Acclimatisation Society of Victoria. Unfortunately the Yarra River frontage was damp, swampy and subject to flooding, so the animals were briefly housed at the Botanical Gardens until in 1862, the City of Melbourne donated 55 acres (22 hectares) of land at Royal Park for the fledgling zoo. Baron von Mueller secured employment at Royal Park for Andrew and David and they helped to lay out the gardens, plant trees and take care of a collection of deer, pheasants, hares and partridges. Initially the zoo was used for the acclimatisation of animals recovering from the long voyage to Australia and for breeding them for sport. In 1872, the zoo bought two lions, a leopard and a cheetah that had been seized from circus showmen Keith and Phillips when they were unable to pay the bill of butcher Mr T K Bennet of Bourke Street. The first zoo director, Mr. Albert Le Souef, negotiated with captains of ships to buy animals at overseas ports they visited and soon a multitude of exotic species arrived, including a ten-year-old Indian elephant in 1878. In 1923, after being head keeper for some years, Andrew was appointed director of the zoo. By 1933, the zoo had 110 different species of animals, 200 species of birds and 72 species of reptiles under Andrew’s care. He had personally planted all but six trees and laid out the garden beds. As director he lobbied authorities for funds to build more humane enclosures for the animals. In June 1928, Table Talk magazine wrote of Andrew Wilkie: “Up at the Zoo there is a humble gentleman who is a lion among the lions, who knows the proper specific to employ when the boa constrictor has chilblains, and who is a friend and confidant of Queenie the elephant. His fount of zoological lore has never been plumbed. It is bottomless, like his good fellowship and geniality. Every day he may be seen somewhere in the grounds of that growing sanctuary for the strange and arresting fauna and creeping things of the world, and I assure you as one who is privy to his passion that that area and its inhabitants are rarely out of his thoughts.” Andrew retired from the zoo in 1936 at the age of 83 and in 1948 died at his home in Brunswick aged 94. He and his wife Josephine had six children. Roy, aged 28 in 1934, was a former Wirth’s circus lion who had been left at the zoo at 10 years of age. Andrew visited Roy every day on his rounds and the pair formed a close and affectionate bond. Wireless Weekly magazine in February 1933 reported, “Roy was delighted to see Mr Wilkie, and in a docile manner, approached the bars of his cage and had his head vigorously rubbed by the director, who daily carries out this act of kindness.” As reported in The Herald on 27 October 1936, “Mr Wilkie has also found the old lion docile. He has not shown the animal any particular favouritism, but the lion has shown him a faithfulness that none of the keepers can claim. When Mr Wilkie approaches the bars the lion rolls over and lets the director stroke him and pull his tail. He gets very excited if Mr Wilkie passes without climbing over the protecting rail for a little game.” A 1930 newsreel film shows Andrew stroking Roy’s mane through the bars and the blissed out big cat lying on his back while lifting his chin for a rub. Another newsreel film from the time shows Andrew stroking a lioness and playfully pulling her tail. The Victorian Acclimatisation Society was founded in 1861 by Edward Wilson, 1813-1878, then owner and editor of The Argus newspaper. He said that Australian indigenous animals were practically useless, providing only “a little sport and an occasional meal”. The Society believed that Australia’s plants and animals were vastly inferior to those in Europe. They wanted to introduce and acclimatise to Victoria “all innoxious animals, birds, fishes, insects and vegetables, whether useful or ornamental” for sport and for the table, and to spread indigenous animals and plants from the colony around the world. Their motto was “if it lives, we want it”. The Society was primarily responsible for introducing sparrows, starlings, sambar and hog deer, ostriches, brown trout, blackberries, and carp to the Murray River. They released the European songbirds, thrush and blackbird to quell the homesickness of British settlers. The Society also sent Australian animals like platypus, echidnas, kangaroos and koalas to Europe for scientific and novelty purposes. Thomas Austin, a wealthy sheep farmer of Barwon Park, Winchelsea (property now owned by the National Trust) was a member and in 1859 he introduced hares, blackbirds, thrushes and partridges onto his property. He is probably best known for introducing 24 breeding rabbits onto his estate as game for shooting parties. Thomas quipped, “The introduction of a few rabbits could do little harm and might provide a touch of home, in addition to a spot of hunting." In 2022, genomic data confirmed that Australia’s feral rabbit population is entirely descended from these rabbits. Biological control has brought the rabbit population down from an estimated high of 10 billion rabbits in the 1920s to approximately 200 million today, inhabiting 70% of Australian landmass (5.3 million square kilometres). In 1872, the Acclimatisation Society was renamed The Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and they focused on importing exotic animals for display purposes to the zoo. In 1937, the Royal Acclimatisation Society of Victoria was recreated as the Zoological Board of Victoria with a focus on research of native animals threatened with extinction. In an editorial for The Argus newspaper, 16 March 1856, Edward Wilson lamented: "…this country has been shamelessly stolen from the blacks. Had they been like the New Zealanders or the North American Indians, we should have bought their land, and supplied them with the means of living when we took it... In less than twenty years we have nearly swept them off the face of the earth. We have shot them down like dogs. In the guise of friendship we have issued corrosion sublimate in their damper, and consigned whole tribes to the agonies of an excruciating death. We have made them drunkards, and infected them with disease which has rotted the bones of their adults, and made such few children as are born amongst them a sorrow and a torture from the very instant of their birth. We have made them outcasts on their own land, and are rapidly consigning them to entire annihilation. There are but a few of them left, comparatively. This is what we would do for that few. We would feed and clothe every one of them.” [Note: this last sentence is italicized in the original newspaper article text]. Lord Huntingfield, (William Charles Arcedeckne Vanneck) 1883-1969, Governor of Victoria 1934-1939, was a British Conservative Party politician and the first ever Australian-born Governor of an Australian state (although he was always considered British). He was patron of the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and was acting Governor-General for six months during the absence of Lord Gowie in 1938. Lady Huntingfield (née Margaret Eleanor Crosby) 1884-1943, his American-born wife showed great interest in social welfare and the advancement of women and children. She was president of the City Newsboys Society and Patroness of the Girls Friendly Society. In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. In 1940, the City of Melbourne opened the Lady Huntingfield Free Kindergarten in North Melbourne, now the Lady Huntingfield Early Learning and Family Services Centre. Lady Huntingfield died in London in 1943 after her house was bombed during a German airstrike. The Lady Huntingfield Memorial Scholarship was established after the City of Melbourne raised £1000 in a public appeal conducted in her memory for students undertaking a Social Work degree at the University of Melbourne. It is awarded annually to this day. The Queen Victoria Hospital named a bed in her honour. References: VICE-ROYALTY GREETS THE KING OF BEASTS AT THE ZOO. (1934, June 26). The Age (Melbourne, Vic. : 1854 - 1954), p. 11. Retrieved August 18, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204818472 Prominent Personalities ANDREW WILKIE (1928, June 7). Table Talk (Melbourne, Vic. : 1885 - 1939), p. 15. Retrieved August 29, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146562949 'Thomas Austin (pastoralist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Austin_(pastoralist) 'Edward Wilson (journalist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Wilson_(journalist) THE WOMAN'S WORLD (1934, June 26). The Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954), p. 14. Retrieved August 19, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article243164806 MR. WILKIE CAN PULL THE OLD LION'S TAIL (1936, October 27). The Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954), p. 4. Retrieved August 18, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article248551307 Director Of Zoo Will Retire Tomorrow--With White Kitten (1936, December 30). The Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954), p. 8. Retrieved August 18, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article244655203 LIGHT CAR CLUB IN CARICATURE (1931, August 25). The Sun News-Pictorial (Melbourne, Vic. : 1922 - 1954; 1956), p. 24. Retrieved August 19, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article276250310 'The Acclimatisation Society was driven by misguided ideals about 'fixing nature' in Australia', ABC News, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-04/acclimatisation-society-introduced-species-history-listen/101588262?utm_source=abc_news_app&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_campaign=abc_news_app&utm_content=safari 'Dr Andrew Wilkie Director Of Melbourne Zoo, With Lion (1930) Video', Pond5 Inc., https://www.pond5.com/stock-footage/item/155691351-dr-andrew-wilkie-director-melbourne-zoo-lion-1930 'Kodak Cinegraph Compilation No 12', ACMI Collection, YouTube.com [Zoo footage at 8.33 minutes, Mr Wilkie at 11.04 minutes], https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZZqgSNsP0k THE ABORIGINES. (1856, March 16). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 4. Retrieved September 28, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article4833244Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42".1930-1939, melbourne zoo, animals, hunting, wildlife, royal park, gardens -
Friends of Ballarat Botanical Gardens History GroupWork on paper - The Zoo Timeline - a preliminary draft, The Zoo in the Ballarat Botanical Gardens
... The Zoo in the Ballarat Botanical Gardens......Zoo...The Zoo in the Ballarat Botanical Gardens, The Zoo Timeline - a preliminary draft....Friends of Ballarat Botanical Gardens History Group George Longley Building Gillies Street North entrance Ballarat West 3350 The Zoo in the Ballarat Botanical Gardens, The Zoo Timeline - a preliminary draft. ...The Zoo in the Ballarat Botanical Gardens, The Zoo Timeline - a preliminary draft.john garner collection, ballarat botanical gardens, zoo, gardens, ballarat -
City of Melbourne LibrariesPhotograph, Bull, Hugh Jones, 1897-1993, Vice-regal visit to zoo: Governor (Lord Huntingfield) meets the cockatoos
... Vice-regal visit to zoo: Governor (Lord Huntingfield) meets the cockatoos...Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. ...Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42"....Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. ...A group of five men dressed in hats and overcoats look at caged cockatoos. Research by project volunteer, Fiona Collyer: On 25 June 1934, new Victorian Governor, His Excellency Lord Huntingfield and his wife Lady Huntingfield made an official visit to the Melbourne Zoological Gardens in order to grant his patronage to the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society. The zoo director, Mr. Andrew Wilkie, introduced them to the cockatoos in the flight aviary. The Argus newspaper reported the visit in the following morning’s issue: "Birds' Greeting To Governor. Visit to Zoological Gardens. "A Very Important Society." "Cheery shouts of "Hullo!" and requests for drinks greeted His Excellency the Governor (Lord Huntingfield) on one of his official visits yesterday morning. Lady Huntingfield, who accompanied him, was asked loudly for a kiss. They were inspecting the huge cockatoo aviary at the Zoological Gardens after Lord Huntingfield had granted his patronage to the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society. Both obviously enjoyed the democratic experience. It was explained to them that most of the cockatoos had been presented by residents of flats, whose neighbours objected to the noise of the birds, while others were protected birds which had been surrendered. Lord Huntingfield recalled that he had taken two Australian cockatoos to England when he left Australia in his youth. One, a galah, had lived in England for many years." In 1929, the Zoo built a commodious new flight aviary at the cost of several thousand pounds and Zoo director, Mr Andrew Wilkie, sent out an appeal published in newspapers Australia-wide for donations of parrots from all states. Many of the parrot species he wanted were protected and a special permit needed for their capture, however Mr Wilkie guaranteed he would obtain authority from the Fisheries and Game Department and that the cost of transit would be borne by the Zoo. The wanted birds were "Parrots - Black-tailed, Rock Pebbler, King, Superb, Grass (all kinds), Swamp or Ground, Mallee or Ringneck" and "Cockatoo[s] - Black, Pink or Major Mitchell, Gang-Gang". The Zoo asked that the birds be sent in boxes large enough to prevent overcrowding, contain food and water and the Zoo notified on the type and number of birds in transit. All boxes were to be addressed to 'The Zoo, Melbourne'. A letter from a reader appeared in the Weekly Times newspaper's popular "Camp-fire Circle" page for "Young Australians", 11 May 1929: "Dear Pal, I am much interested in your page, especially the nature notes. I have a pet parrot, but I don’t like to see it shut up in a cage, so I am giving it to the Melbourne Zoo. It can whistle 'Pretty Joey' and 'What's the Matter with Father' and is just learning to whistle for the dog... Wishing you and the Camp-fire Circle success." - Murray Holmes (Gorae, Vic.) The fate of this talented parrot is unknown, however in 1932, this young naturist, T Murray Holmes, 1912-1947, collected for the first time a type specimen, blue star sun orchid from Gorae (near Portland, Victoria), and it was named in his honour, Thelymitra holmesii. Murray was described by orchid collector W H Nicholls as "a youthful and energetic orchidologist, who added much to our knowledge of the orchids of south-western Victoria." Murray Holmes enlisted in the army in 1941 and fought in the Middle East before being sent to Java. In 1942 he was captured by the Japanese and became a prisoner of war for three years, working on the notorious Thai-Burma railway. Murray's health was undermined though ill treatment and starvation and he returned to Australia after the war, broken and sick. He died aged 35 in 1947. He was intensely interested in the flora and fauna of the Gorae area to the end. Murray's parents received over 200 tributes of respect for their son - too many to answer personally so they put a notice in the Portland Guardian thanking "all kind friends and relatives for letters, cards, floral tributes and personal expressions of sympathy received in their recent sad bereavement - the lamented death of their loved son, Murray." Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. He first worked as a horticultural assistant to Government botanist Baron Ferdinand von Mueller at the Botanical Gardens at the age of 13, along with his older brother David. One of Andrew’s jobs was to capture moths for the National Herbarium. In 1857, a group of prominent Melburnians assembled at St. Patrick’s Hall to form the Zoological Society of Victoria, with the aim of introducing animals and plants from overseas. It was conceived, “For the purposes of science and for that of affording the public the advantages of studying the habits of the animal creation in properly arranged zoological gardens.” The Victorian Government granted 32 acres (13 hectares) of land to the Zoological Society at the southern end of Richmond Paddock on the opposite bank to the Botanical Gardens. (This is where AAMI Stadium and Collingwood Football Club now stand.) In 1861, the Zoological Society of Victoria was renamed The Acclimatisation Society of Victoria. Unfortunately the Yarra River frontage was damp, swampy and subject to flooding, so the animals were briefly housed at the Botanical Gardens until in 1862, the City of Melbourne donated 55 acres (22 hectares) of land at Royal Park for the fledgling zoo. Baron von Mueller secured employment at Royal Park for Andrew and David and they helped to lay out the gardens, plant trees and take care of a collection of deer, pheasants, hares and partridges. Initially the zoo was used for the acclimatisation of animals recovering from the long voyage to Australia and for breeding them for sport. In 1872, the zoo bought two lions, a leopard and a cheetah that had been seized from circus showmen Keith and Phillips when they were unable to pay the bill of butcher Mr T K Bennet of Bourke Street. The first zoo director, Mr. Albert Le Souef, negotiated with captains of ships to buy animals at overseas ports they visited and soon a multitude of exotic species arrived, including a ten-year-old Indian elephant in 1878. In 1923, after being head keeper for some years, Andrew was appointed director of the zoo. By 1933, the zoo had 110 different species of animals, 200 species of birds and 72 species of reptiles under Andrew’s care. He had personally planted all but six trees and laid out the garden beds. As director he lobbied authorities for funds to build more humane enclosures for the animals. In June 1928, Table Talk magazine wrote of Andrew Wilkie: “Up at the Zoo there is a humble gentleman who is a lion among the lions, who knows the proper specific to employ when the boa constrictor has chilblains, and who is a friend and confidant of Queenie the elephant. His fount of zoological lore has never been plumbed. It is bottomless, like his good fellowship and geniality. Every day he may be seen somewhere in the grounds of that growing sanctuary for the strange and arresting fauna and creeping things of the world, and I assure you as one who is privy to his passion that that area and its inhabitants are rarely out of his thoughts.” Andrew retired from the zoo in 1936 at the age of 83 and in 1948 died at his home in Brunswick aged 94. He and his wife Josephine had six children. The Victorian Acclimatisation Society was founded in 1861 by Edward Wilson, 1813-1878, then owner and editor of The Argus newspaper. He said that Australian indigenous animals were practically useless, providing only “a little sport and an occasional meal”. The Society believed that Australia’s plants and animals were vastly inferior to those in Europe. They wanted to introduce and acclimatise to Victoria “all innoxious animals, birds, fishes, insects and vegetables, whether useful or ornamental” for sport and for the table, and to spread indigenous animals and plants from the colony around the world. Their motto was “if it lives, we want it”. The Society was primarily responsible for introducing sparrows, starlings, sambar and hog deer, ostriches, brown trout, blackberries, and carp to the Murray River. They released the European songbirds, thrush and blackbird to quell the homesickness of British settlers. The Society also sent Australian animals like platypus, echidnas, kangaroos and koalas to Europe for scientific and novelty purposes. Thomas Austin, a wealthy sheep farmer of Barwon Park, Winchelsea (property now owned by the National Trust) was a member and in 1859 he introduced hares, blackbirds, thrushes and partridges onto his property. He is probably best known for introducing 24 breeding rabbits onto his estate as game for shooting parties. Thomas quipped, “The introduction of a few rabbits could do little harm and might provide a touch of home, in addition to a spot of hunting." In 2022, genomic data confirmed that Australia’s feral rabbit population is entirely descended from these rabbits. Biological control has brought the rabbit population down from an estimated high of 10 billion rabbits in the 1920s to approximately 200 million today, inhabiting 70% of Australian landmass (5.3 million square kilometres). In 1872, the Acclimatisation Society was renamed The Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and they focused on importing exotic animals for display purposes to the zoo. In 1937, the Royal Acclimatisation Society of Victoria was recreated as the Zoological Board of Victoria with a focus on research of native animals threatened with extinction. In an editorial for The Argus newspaper, 16 March 1856, Edward Wilson lamented: "...this country has been shamelessly stolen from the blacks. Had they been like the New Zealanders or the North American Indians, we should have bought their land, and supplied them with the means of living when we took it... In less than twenty years we have nearly swept them off the face of the earth. We have shot them down like dogs. In the guise of friendship we have issued corrosion sublimate in their damper, and consigned whole tribes to the agonies of an excruciating death. We have made them drunkards, and infected them with disease which has rotted the bones of their adults, and made such few children as are born amongst them a sorrow and a torture from the very instant of their birth. We have made them outcasts on their own land, and are rapidly consigning them to entire annihilation. There are but a few of them left, comparatively. This is what we would do for that few. We would feed and clothe every one of them.” [Note: this last sentence is italicized in the original newspaper article text]. Lord Huntingfield, (William Charles Arcedeckne Vanneck) 1883-1969, Governor of Victoria 1934-1939, was a British Conservative Party politician and the first ever Australian-born Governor of an Australian state (although he was always considered British). He was patron of the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and was acting Governor-General for six months during the absence of Lord Gowie in 1938. Lady Huntingfield (née Margaret Eleanor Crosby) 1884-1943, his American-born wife showed great interest in social welfare and the advancement of women and children. She was president of the City Newsboys Society and Patroness of the Girls Friendly Society. In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. In 1940, the City of Melbourne opened the Lady Huntingfield Free Kindergarten in North Melbourne, now the Lady Huntingfield Early Learning and Family Services Centre. Lady Huntingfield died in London in 1943 after her house was bombed during a German airstrike. The Lady Huntingfield Memorial Scholarship was established after the City of Melbourne raised £1000 in a public appeal conducted in her memory for students undertaking a Social Work degree at the University of Melbourne. It is awarded annually to this day. The Queen Victoria Hospital named a bed in her honour. References: Prominent Personalities ANDREW WILKIE (1928, June 7). Table Talk (Melbourne, Vic. : 1885 - 1939), p. 15. Retrieved August 29, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146562949 BIRDS' GREETING TO GOVERNOR (1934, June 26). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 6. Retrieved August 19, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article10950051 Zoo Appealing For Parrots And Cockatoos To Fill Aviary For Children’s Instruction (1929, April 11). The Sun News-Pictorial (Melbourne, Vic. : 1922 - 1954; 1956), p. 31. Retrieved August 23, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article275757361 LETTERS FROM READERS (1929, May 11). Weekly Times (Melbourne, Vic. : 1869 - 1954), p. 50. Retrieved October 6, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article223183144 Correspondence. (1929, April 18). Corryong Courier (Vic. : 1894 - 1945), p. 6. Retrieved August 30, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article269039262 'Edward Wilson (journalist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Wilson_(journalist) 'Thomas Austin (pastoralist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Austin_(pastoralist) 'The Acclimatisation Society was driven by misguided ideals about 'fixing nature' in Australia', ABC News, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-04/acclimatisation-society-introduced-species-history-listen/101588262? utm_source=abc_news_app&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_campaign=abc_news_app&utm_content=safari Touching Canine Devotion. (1942, September 21). Portland Guardian (Vic. : 1876 - 1953), p. 1 (EVENING). Retrieved October 6, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article64381989 OBITUARY (1947, August 11). Portland Guardian (Vic. : 1876 - 1953), p. 2 (EVENING). Retrieved August 26, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article64412155 Family Notices (1947, September 11). Portland Guardian (Vic. : 1876 - 1953), p. 2 (EVENING). Retrieved October 10, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article64412476 'Thelymitra holmesii', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelymitra_holmesii THE ABORIGINES. (1856, March 16). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 4. Retrieved September 28, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article4833244Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42".zoos, governors, 1930-1939, cockatoos -
Ballarat Tramway MuseumCard - Card - Souvenir Card, Souvenir Card for Zoo Horse Tram, Melbourne's Royal Park
... Souvenir Card for Zoo Horse Tram, Melbourne's Royal Park...Card gives brief history of the Zoo Horse Tram that ran from Sydney Road cable tramway, through Royal Park to the Zoo gates. ...Black and white photograph on front. Brief history of Zoo Horse Tram on back ...Card gives brief history of the Zoo Horse Tram that ran from Sydney Road cable tramway, through Royal Park to the Zoo gates. ...Ron Bridger was an avid collector of items related to transport, predominately Trams. These items include newspaper cuttings, pamphlets, reports, timetables, fares prices plus special items relating to events. Items from Melbourne and regional Victoria, interstate - Adelaide and Sydney, plus overseas, make up this collection. Small souvenir card produced by The Tramway Museum Society of Victoria Limited, Melbourne. Card gives brief history of the Zoo Horse Tram that ran from Sydney Road cable tramway, through Royal Park to the Zoo gates. It opened on the 10th March 1890. Initially there were two open "toastrack" trams. The tramway subsequently introduced two additional enclosed vehiclesPale yellow card with bright yellow sections. Black and white photograph on front. Brief history of Zoo Horse Tram on back The Tramway Museum Society of Victoria Ltd. Ticket No, 4705 tramway museum society of victoria, zoo horse tram, royal park, open toastrack tram, enclosed trams, 1890, souvenir card, sydney road cable tram, ron bridger collection, as box 48a -
Mission to Seafarers VictoriaPhotograph, French sailors at zoo - Madame Lion & Miss Godfrey, 1917
... French sailors at zoo - Madame Lion & Miss Godfrey......zoo...French sailors at zoo / Madame Leon (Lion is the correct spelling) & Miss Godfrey...French sailors at zoo - Madame Lion & Miss Godfrey Photograph Photograph ...Marie Lion migrated with her sister, Berthe Mouchette and her husband in 1885. Berthe established an art school in the city. After the death of her husband the sisters purchased a school, Oberwyl, in St Kilda in 1885. The school was later one of the LHLG schools. Berthe was the founder of the Alliance Française of Melbourne in 1890. With the Great Depression, the sisters had to sell Oberwyl and moved to Adelaide. They returned to France during WWI to nurse wounded soldiers. And returned to Adelaide in 1916 after Marie contracted an infection. She was the South Australia representative of the "Société d’assistance maternelle et infantile". After the end of the war a number of French villages were ‘adopted’ by cities in Australia. Dernancourt, a small village in the Somme was adopted by Adelaide, and Mme Mouchette and Mme Lion worked to raise funds to help in the rebuilding of the almost completely destroyed town.The picture shows the link with the French community. Ethel and her sister Frederica Godfrey could speak French and were well acquainted with the members of this community: Charlotte Crivelli for example. Frederica was secretary of the Alliance Française of Melbourne in the early 1900, in 1917 she also became Honorary Secretary of the French Red Cross, funded by Charlotte Crivelli.Portait of two ladies standing in the middle with 3 soldiers from the French Navy, a wounded digger and a young man.French sailors at zoo / Madame Leon (Lion is the correct spelling) & Miss Godfreylion, marie (1855–1922), mouchette, berthe (1846–1928) nee lion, alliance française of melbourne, société d’assistance maternelle et infantile, france, french, zoo, french red cross, crivelli, charlotte (1863–1956), anzac, french navy, oberwyl, ethel augusta godfrey 1861-1935, frederica godfrey -
City of Melbourne LibrariesPhotograph, Bull, Hugh Jones, 1897-1993, Vice-regal visit to zoo: Governor (Lord Huntingfield) and koala
... Vice-regal visit to zoo: Governor (Lord Huntingfield) and koala...Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. ...Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42"....Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. ...Published: (1934, June 26). The Age (Melbourne, Vic. : 1854 - 1954), p. 11. Published title: VICE-ROYALTY GREETS THE KING OF THE BEASTS AT THE ZOO. Published caption: Lord Huntingfield experienced a pleasant “induction ceremony” as Patron of the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society yesterday, when he made a tour of the Zoological Gardens. The picture shows the Governor, accompanied by Lady Huntingfield, inspecting the King of Beasts, who is submitting to a little playful treatment from the Director of the Gardens, Mr. Wilkie, while the Director whispers in his ear that a distinguished visitor has come to see him. (Inset), is a picture of Lord Huntingfield greeting one of the Koalas. Trove article identifier: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204818472 Description: A man wearing a hat, scarf and overcoat reaches up to pat a koala in a tree watched by a man in a hat and suit. Research by project volunteer, Fiona Collyer: In 1932, the Zoo built an Australian native animal enclosure which visitors could enter and closely view koalas, wallabies, kookaburras and magpies all placed together. The branches of the trees in the enclosure were cut so that visitors could easily see and feed the koalas sitting in them. The cost to feed each koala fresh gum leaves was fifteen shillings per week. By 1924, Queensland was the last stronghold in Australia for the koala. They were functionally extinct in South Australia, only a few hundred in NSW, and an estimated population of 1000 animals remained in Victoria. There had been a six-month open season on koalas in Queensland in 1919 where over a million had been slaughtered, however with its vast, dense forests it was impossible to accurately know their numbers. Koala fur is tough, warm and waterproof and was in high demand from consumers in Canada, Britain and the US to make hats and gloves and for lining greatcoats. In 1927, with Queensland suffering a crippling drought and high unemployment, the cash-strapped McCormack Labor Government declared an “Open Season” on koalas and “opossums” for their skins, for the month of August. (Possums were often called “opossums” at this time but they are actually possums). There were widespread protests from many groups including the Nature Lovers League, Wild Life Preservation Society of Australia, Queensland Museum, C.W.A. Royal Australian Ornithologist Union, Boy Scouts, religious and women’s groups. There were letters to newspapers from ordinary people, editorials and pleas to women to refuse to wear or purchase koala fur. People questioned the masculinity of koala hunters as it was felt that no proper bushman or sportsman would kill such a defenceless creature. The Brisbane Courier newspaper led the campaign, devoting six columns a day to “Spare the Bear”. Author Vance Palmer sent an impassioned letter to the editor of the The Brisbane Courier, 19 July 1927: “Sir- It is be hoped that the disgust which all humane people have felt at the declaration of an open season for native bears in August will not be allowed to fade away until some protest... so overwhelming and effective that the question will never be raised again. For the shooting of our harmless and loveable native bear is nothing less than barbarous. His case is entirely different from that of other furred animals. No one has ever accused him of spoiling the farmers’ wheat, eating the squatters’ grass or even spreading the prickly pear. There is not a social vice that can be put down to his account. In addition, he is comparatively defenceless. He affords no sport to the gunman, and can be trusted to present a sitting target to the creature mean enough to aim at him. For this reason he has been almost blotted out already from some areas, in days when our fauna and flora were held in such little regard that the settlers’ first instinct was to shoot every strange animal and to sink his axe into every unfamiliar tree.” The Anglican Archbishop of Brisbane, Gerald Sharp, had his letter published in The Brisbane Courier on 16 July 1927: “Sir... The extermination of fauna so distinctive of our country, especially of such harmless and pretty creatures as our native bears, seems to me a shameful thing, and this is likely to mean their extermination.” But it was all to no avail. Known as “Black August”, the government was unmoved by the public’s outrage. 10,000 licences were issued to hunters and “the slaughter of the innocents” went ahead. The newspapers were full of stories of dreadful cruelty against the helpless, benign creatures by the heartless hunters who not only used guns and spotlights but wire snares and cyanide baits so that pelts wouldn’t be damaged. Infant koalas were left orphaned and unlikely to survive without their mothers. Top quality pelts were sold at an average price of 56 shillings and 9 pence per dozen, poor quality skins for as little as 2 1/2 pence each. In December 1927, the Minister for Agriculture and Stock, Mr W. Forgan Smith told the Parliament that during the August open season 597,985 koala pelts worth £139,595 had netted the state’s coffers £6000. 952,194 “opossum” pelts were sold and £9000 made for the State. The backlash that followed helped topple the Queensland Labor Government in 1929. The Wild Life Preservation Society of Australia lobbied the Prime Minister Mr Stanley Bruce to refuse to issue exportation permits for koala pelts and from 10 November 1927 the Commonwealth Government suspended the issuing of permits. In 1930, the Society made a direct appeal to USA President Herbert Hoover and he signed an order prohibiting the importation of koala and wombat fur to USA, eliminating a major market. Koala pelts were often deliberately mislabelled “wombat” to get around restrictions. The ban most likely saved the koala from probable extinction. Three years later the Australian Federal Government banned the export of koala products. This movement against koala killing was really the first conservation campaign in Australia. It raised awareness of the vulnerability of a beloved animal and eventually brought about national parks and national laws for their protection. By 1936, community opposition to possum open seasons was beginning. The koala was made a Protected Species in all states in 1937, meaning no one is allowed to harm a koala, however the laws protecting the gum trees they rely on for food and shelter are weak. The Australian Government estimates the wild koala population in Australia is between 225,000 and 500,000 in 2024. The Australian Koala Foundation estimates the national population at less than 60,000 in 2021 with a 30% decline in three years. Habitat loss from land clearing, dog attacks, road deaths, chlamydia, bushfires and drought exacerbated by climate change, continues to cause their decline. Over eight million koalas were killed for their pelts between 1888 and 1927. Any one of the annual harvests killed more koalas than are alive now. At this time, children were also being taught to appreciate Australian native animals. In 1933, “Blinky Bill: The Quaint Little Australian” book for children was published by Angus and Robertson. It was written and illustrated by New Zealand-born author Dorothy Wall and “Dedicated to my son Peter and all other Peters and Johns and Bobs and Toms and Marys and Bettys and Joans and Pats and all kind children.” The book tells the story of Blinky Bill - a mischievous, patched knickerbocker-wearing koala and his mother and father. The story has messages of conservation and instances of human unkindness and cruelty. Mr. and Mrs. Koala and young Blinky lead a mostly idyllic family life amongst a variety of other animals in the forest. However it all changes in chapter two, when Blinky Bill’s father is distressingly shot by a hunter. There is a harrowing description of Mr. Koala’s shooting and eventual death. “The Koala family lived so happily; never thinking of harm, or that anything could happen to disturb their little home, as all they asked for were plenty of fresh gum-leaves and the warm sun. They had no idea such things as guns were in the world or that a human being had a heart so cruel that he would take a pleasure in seeing a poor little body riddled with bullets hanging helplessly from the tree-top... That same being might just as well take his gun and shoot baby kookaburras, so helpless were they all and so trusting.” “Poor Mr. Koala one day was curled up asleep in his favourite corner, when the terrible thing happened. Bang! He opened his eyes in wonder. What was that? Did the limb of the tree snap where that young cub of his was skylarking? ... bang! again. This time he felt a stinging pain in his leg... Peering over the bough of the tree he saw a man on the ground with something long and black in his arms... Another bang and his ear began to hurt. Bang! again and now his little body was stinging all over. He grunted loudly and slowly climbed up the tree, calling Mrs. Koala and Blinky as he went. He managed to reach the topmost branch... Tears were pouring down his poor little face. He brushed them away with his front paws and cried just like a baby. Fortunately Mrs. Koala and Blinky Bill were hiding in the leaves quite motionless, and the shadows of the tree made them appear as part of it. The man with the gun stood and waited a long time, then walked away, whistling as he went - the only sound to be heard in the bush except the cries of the little bear far up in the tree.” Blinky and his mother quietly and fearfully wait for Mr. Koala to wake. In the morning, grunting and crying, they feel his lifeless body with their paws. Eventually Mrs. Koala realises that her husband is dead and that they need to move to a safe place. After travelling deeper into the forest, Mrs. Koala and Blinky meet koalas Mrs. Grunty and her son Snubby and she describes how she was captured as a baby by koala fur trappers to be a pet for a little girl. The trapper forgot to bring gum leaves for the koala so they try to feed her cake, milk and bananas, making her sick. The little girl’s father relays something he read in the paper: “During the year 1920 to 1921, two hundred and five thousand six hundred and seventy-nine koalas were killed and their skins sold to the fur market, under the name of wombat.” They place the koala in a box with a teddy bear for company. The baby koala’s health deteriorates and the alarmed trapper returns her to the bush. Mrs. Grunty tells Mrs. Koala that she and Blinky are the only bears that she has seen for ten years: “I remember well the little girl’s father telling her... that not so many years ago the bush was alive with us bears, from Queensland to the south of Victoria. Now, we are so rare that we have become a curiosity, something to put in zoos, for children to see; and actually in museums. I believe our grandparents sit there in glass cases, stuffed with something inside to make them appear alive, and, oh dear, glass eyes. In New South Wales, I think we could wander for miles from one corner to another and never meet a bear. I don’t know why we were all killed. As you know, we don’t eat the farmers’ crop or ruin their orchards. All we asked for were our own gum-trees.” At the end of the book, Dorothy tells her readers - “The kindest action of all would be to leave the koala baby in his own bushland, among his own playmates, with the sun, the sky, the birds, and the gum-trees, where he will grow to manhood and live for many years - happy as he should be.” In 1934, a “Wild Zoo”, the Sir Colin Mackenzie Sanctuary, opened on 32 hectares of land, formerly part of Coranderrk Aboriginal Reserve in the Yarra Valley, exclusively displaying Australian native animals, birds and reptiles. It was later renamed Healesville Sanctuary and is now managed by Melbourne Zoo and home to over 200 species of Australian native fauna. The Sanctuary is committed to rescuing, breeding, researching and raising awareness of the vulnerability of Australian animals. Andrew Arthur Wellesley Wilkie, 1853-1948, was Director of the Melbourne Zoo from 1923 to 1936 and was associated with the zoo for 70 years. He first worked as a horticultural assistant to Government botanist Baron Ferdinand von Mueller at the Botanical Gardens at the age of 13, along with his older brother David. One of Andrew’s jobs was to capture moths for the National Herbarium. In 1857, a group of prominent Melburnians assembled at St. Patrick’s Hall to form the Zoological Society of Victoria, with the aim of introducing animals and plants from overseas. It was conceived, “For the purposes of science and for that of affording the public the advantages of studying the habits of the animal creation in properly arranged zoological gardens.” The Victorian Government granted 32 acres (13 hectares) of land to the Zoological Society at the southern end of Richmond Paddock on the opposite bank to the Botanical Gardens. (This is where AAMI Stadium and Collingwood Football Club now stand.) In 1861, the Zoological Society of Victoria was renamed The Acclimatisation Society of Victoria. Unfortunately the Yarra River frontage was damp, swampy and subject to flooding, so the animals were briefly housed at the Botanical Gardens until in 1862, the City of Melbourne donated 55 acres (22 hectares) of land at Royal Park for the fledgling zoo. Baron von Mueller secured employment at Royal Park for Andrew and David and they helped to lay out the gardens, plant trees and take care of a collection of deer, pheasants, hares and partridges. Initially the zoo was used for the acclimatisation of animals recovering from the long voyage to Australia and for breeding them for sport. In 1872, the zoo bought two lions, a leopard and a cheetah that had been seized from circus showmen Keith and Phillips when they were unable to pay the bill of butcher Mr T K Bennet of Bourke Street. The first zoo director, Mr. Albert Le Souef, negotiated with captains of ships to buy animals at overseas ports they visited and soon a multitude of exotic species arrived, including a ten-year-old Indian elephant in 1878. In 1923, after being head keeper for some years, Andrew was appointed director of the zoo. By 1933, the zoo had 110 different species of animals, 200 species of birds and 72 species of reptiles under Andrew’s care. He had personally planted all but six trees and laid out the garden beds. As director he lobbied authorities for funds to build more humane enclosures for the animals. In June 1928, Table Talk magazine wrote of Andrew Wilkie: “Up at the Zoo there is a humble gentleman who is a lion among the lions, who knows the proper specific to employ when the boa constrictor has chilblains, and who is a friend and confidant of Queenie the elephant. His fount of zoological lore has never been plumbed. It is bottomless, like his good fellowship and geniality. Every day he may be seen somewhere in the grounds of that growing sanctuary for the strange and arresting fauna and creeping things of the world, and I assure you as one who is privy to his passion that that area and its inhabitants are rarely out of his thoughts.” Andrew retired from the zoo in 1936 at the age of 83 and in 1948 died at his home in Brunswick aged 94. He and his wife Josephine had six children. The Victorian Acclimatisation Society was founded in 1861 by Edward Wilson, 1813-1878, then owner and editor of The Argus newspaper. He said that Australian indigenous animals were practically useless, providing only “a little sport and an occasional meal”. The Society believed that Australia’s plants and animals were vastly inferior to those in Europe. They wanted to introduce and acclimatise to Victoria “all innoxious animals, birds, fishes, insects and vegetables, whether useful or ornamental” for sport and for the table, and to spread indigenous animals and plants from the colony around the world. Their motto was “if it lives, we want it”. The Society was primarily responsible for introducing sparrows, starlings, sambar and hog deer, ostriches, brown trout, blackberries, and carp to the Murray River. They released the European songbirds, thrush and blackbird to quell the homesickness of British settlers. The Society also sent Australian animals like platypus, echidnas, kangaroos and koalas to Europe for scientific and novelty purposes. Thomas Austin, a wealthy sheep farmer of Barwon Park, Winchelsea (property now owned by the National Trust) was a member and in 1859 he introduced hares, blackbirds, thrushes and partridges onto his property. He is probably best known for introducing 24 breeding rabbits onto his estate as game for shooting parties. Thomas quipped, “The introduction of a few rabbits could do little harm and might provide a touch of home, in addition to a spot of hunting." In 2022, genomic data confirmed that Australia’s feral rabbit population is entirely descended from these rabbits. Biological control has brought the rabbit population down from an estimated high of 10 billion rabbits in the 1920s to approximately 200 million today, inhabiting 70% of Australian landmass (5.3 million square kilometres). In 1872, the Acclimatisation Society was renamed The Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and they focused on importing exotic animals for display purposes to the zoo. In 1937, the Royal Acclimatisation Society of Victoria was recreated as the Zoological Board of Victoria with a focus on research of native animals threatened with extinction. In an editorial for The Argus newspaper, 16 March 1856, Edward Wilson lamented: "...this country has been shamelessly stolen from the blacks. Had they been like the New Zealanders or the North American Indians, we should have bought their land, and supplied them with the means of living when we took it... In less than twenty years we have nearly swept them off the face of the earth. We have shot them down like dogs. In the guise of friendship we have issued corrosion sublimate in their damper, and consigned whole tribes to the agonies of an excruciating death. We have made them drunkards, and infected them with disease which has rotted the bones of their adults, and made such few children as are born amongst them a sorrow and a torture from the very instant of their birth. We have made them outcasts on their own land, and are rapidly consigning them to entire annihilation. There are but a few of them left, comparatively. This is what we would do for that few. We would feed and clothe every one of them.” [Note: this last sentence is italicized in the original newspaper article text]. Lord Huntingfield, (William Charles Arcedeckne Vanneck) 1883-1969, Governor of Victoria 1934-1939, was a British Conservative Party politician and the first ever Australian-born Governor of an Australian state (although he was always considered British). He was patron of the Royal Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria and was acting Governor-General for six months during the absence of Lord Gowie in 1938. Lady Huntingfield (née Margaret Eleanor Crosby) 1884-1943, his American-born wife showed great interest in social welfare and the advancement of women and children. She was president of the City Newsboys Society and Patroness of the Girls Friendly Society. In 1937, rose breeder Alister Clark named a yellow hybrid tea rose for her. In 1940, the City of Melbourne opened the Lady Huntingfield Free Kindergarten in North Melbourne, now the Lady Huntingfield Early Learning and Family Services Centre. Lady Huntingfield died in London in 1943 after her house was bombed during a German airstrike. The Lady Huntingfield Memorial Scholarship was established after the City of Melbourne raised £1000 in a public appeal conducted in her memory for students undertaking a Social Work degree at the University of Melbourne. It is awarded annually to this day. The Queen Victoria Hospital named a bed in her honour. References: VICE-ROYALTY GREETS THE KING OF BEASTS AT THE ZOO. (1934, June 26). The Age (Melbourne, Vic. : 1854 - 1954), p. 11. Retrieved August 23, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204818472 Prominent Personalities ANDREW WILKIE (1928, June 7). Table Talk (Melbourne, Vic. : 1885 - 1939), p. 15. Retrieved August 29, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146562949 'Edward Wilson (journalist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Wilson_(journalist) 'Thomas Austin (pastoralist)', Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Austin_(pastoralist) 'The Acclimatisation Society was driven by misguided ideals about 'fixing nature' in Australia', ABC News, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-04/acclimatisation-society-introduced-species-history-listen/101588262?utm_campaign=abc_news_web&utm_content=link&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_source=abc_news_web Blinky Bill: the quaint little Australian (eBook); by Dorothy Wall, 1933, 2023, Project Gutenberg Australia, https://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks04/0400571h.html "Black August": Queensland's Open Season on koalas in 1927 (thesis); Glenn Fowler, 1993, Australian National University, https://www.savethekoala.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Black-August.pdf Unfair game: Queensland's Open Season on koalas in 1927; Jacqui Donegan, 2000, University of Queensland, https://mesto-ku.narod.ru/koalas.pdf OPEN SEASON CONDEMNED. (1927, July 19). The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), p. 15. Retrieved September 5, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article21863465 COUNTRY WOMEN'S ASSOCIATION. (1927, July 30). The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), p. 25. Retrieved September 20, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article21866965 AUSTRALIA: Barnardo's children at Melbourne Park Zoo (1929), British Pathé, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Wcrbo_cHpI 'Kodak Cinegraph Compilation No 8', ACMI Collection, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCrBng5RwFI KOALA SKINS. EXPORT BAN SOUGHT. (1927, August 4). The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), p. 10. Retrieved September 15, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article21868746 THE ABORIGINES. (1856, March 16). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 5. Retrieved September 28, 2024, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article4833244 Koala Bears (1937), British Pathé, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbqgMtyuzwE Australian Koala Bear (Earliest Archive Footage: 1929), Pond5, https://www.pond5.com/stock-footage/item/152767491-australian-koala-bear-earliest-archive-footage-1929Photographer notations on slide: "Vice Regal visit to zoo B42".1930-1939, zoos, governors, koalas, conservation, possums, botanic gardens -
Mission to Seafarers VictoriaPhotograph - Photograph, Sepia, Anne Treverton Goldsmith (nee Lobb), New Year's Day at the Zoo, 1907, 1 January 1907
... New Year's Day at the Zoo, 1907...zoo...Seafarers compete in 3-legged race at the zoo...Mission to Seafarers Victoria 717 Flinders Street Docklands melbourne Seafarers compete in 3-legged race at the zoo zoo 1907 race picnic lhlg ladies harbour lights guild sailors seamen sports games 3-legged race anne treverton goldsmith (nee lobb Small monochrome outdoor photograph, depicting seamen playing three legged race. ...Seafarers compete in 3-legged race at the zooSmall monochrome outdoor photograph, depicting seamen playing three legged race.zoo, 1907, race, picnic, lhlg, ladies harbour lights guild, sailors, seamen, sports, games, 3-legged race, anne treverton goldsmith (nee lobb -
Mission to Seafarers VictoriaPhotograph - Photograph, Sepia, Mr and Mrs Gurney Goldsmith, New Year's Day at the Zoo, 1907, 1 January1907
... New Year's Day at the Zoo, 1907...zoo...Seafarers and LHLG members photographed during their zoo outing on New year's day, 1907...Mission to Seafarers Victoria 717 Flinders Street Docklands melbourne Seafarers and LHLG members photographed during their zoo outing on New year's day, 1907 zoo 1907 mr dudley le souef picnic lhlg ladies harbour lights guild sailors seamen seafarers gardens parks new year umbrella Small monochrome outdoor photograph, depicting a large gathering of men and women grouped in a rough semi-circle, quite formally dressed, posing to be photographed New Year's Day at the Zoo, 1907 Photograph Photograph, Sepia Mr and Mrs Gurney Goldsmith ...Seafarers and LHLG members photographed during their zoo outing on New year's day, 1907Small monochrome outdoor photograph, depicting a large gathering of men and women grouped in a rough semi-circle, quite formally dressed, posing to be photographedzoo, 1907, mr dudley le souef, picnic, lhlg, ladies harbour lights guild, sailors, seamen, seafarers, gardens, parks, new year, umbrella -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Bulla Primary School, Melbourne Zoo, c1990
... Melbourne Zoo....A non-digital coloured photograph of a keeper in an enclosure at the zoo feeding the kangaroos....Melbourne Zoo. Photograph Bulla Primary School ...The children from Bulla Primary School enjoyed an excursion to Melbourne's Zoological Gardens where they witnessed a number of keepers tending to the animals. Some were cleaning out the enclosure while others were feeding the animals like this one in the kangaroo enclosure. The children were able to watch the procedures but were not able to venture into them.The excursion to Melbourne's Zoological Gardens was included in the student's environmental studies.A non-digital coloured photograph of a keeper in an enclosure at the zoo feeding the kangaroos.melbourne zoo, bulla primary school, school excursions, kangaroos -
Mission to Seafarers VictoriaPhotograph - Photograph, Sepia, Mr and Mrs Gurney Goldsmith, Lunch, Boxing day at the Zoo 1905, 26 December 1905
... Lunch, Boxing day at the Zoo 1905...zoo...Zoo outing on Boxing Day 1905, depicting a large group of men seated around a number of makeshift tables on barres for a meal...Mission to Seafarers Victoria 717 Flinders Street Docklands melbourne Zoo outing on Boxing Day 1905, depicting a large group of men seated around a number of makeshift tables on barres for a meal zoo boxing day 1905 goldsmith album picnics lhlg entertainments social events seamen sailors seafarers barrels Small monochrome outdoor photograph, depicting a large group of men seated at makeshift tables under a group of trees. ...Zoo outing on Boxing Day 1905, depicting a large group of men seated around a number of makeshift tables on barres for a mealSmall monochrome outdoor photograph, depicting a large group of men seated at makeshift tables under a group of trees. Fading to top half of photograph zoo, boxing day, 1905, goldsmith album, picnics, lhlg, entertainments, social events, seamen, sailors, seafarers, barrels -
Surrey Hills Historical Society CollectionPhotograph, Lance & Beryl Young and Shirley Mair at the zoo, 1960, 1940
... Lance & Beryl Young and Shirley Mair at the zoo, 1960..."SHIRL MAIR / Melb Zoo / 1940"...Lance & Beryl Young and Shirley Mair at the zoo, 1960 Photograph ...Ernest Lance Young was born 24 March 1915 in Surrey Hills, the son of Ernest Augustus Young and Ruby Nichell Whitty. He married Beryl Mair in 1939 and died on 5 October 1999 at Mont Albert. Electoral rolls record him as a manufacturer. His address after marriage was 11 York Street, Mont Albert. Beryl Mair (1916-1976) was the daughter of David Miller Mair and Lily Vipond Deakin. She had an older brother Geoffrey David (1913) and younger sisters Gwynneth (1918), Isobel Lillian (1921) and Shirley Inez (1928).This is part of a large donation of material relating to the Deakin, Mair and Young families, all of whom had connections with Surrey Hills / Mont Albert. The donor is the daughter of Ernest Lance and Beryl Young.Post card photograph with a stippled surface which has been cut in two and stuck back together but without the top RH corner section. It shows a well-dressed couple and a young girl. The woman and girl are in summer dresses and wearing hats.Multiple inscriptions on both sections. "Young" in lead pencil. "Lance Young / Beryl " / Shirley Mair / at Zoo 1940." Two lines blacked out with permanent marker. "SHIRL MAIR / Melb Zoo / 1940"ernest lance young, lance young, beryl mair, beryl young, shirley inez mair, zoo -
Melbourne Tram MuseumEphemera - Ticket/s, Tramway Museum Society of Victoria (TMSV), Zoo Horse Tram operated by the TMSV, 1980's
... Zoo Horse Tram operated by the TMSV...Ticket - printed on card - for the Zoo Horse Tram operated by the TMSV, with an image of the Zoo horse tram at the Royal Park gates, and the story of the tram on the rear along with conditions of travel. ...Melbourne Tram Museum 8 Wallen Road Hawthorn melbourne Trams tramways Tickets TMSV Zoo Tram Royal Park On rear in ink "My father took me on this tram - 1922" and "Edna Caddell Leckie" Ticket - printed on card - for the Zoo Horse Tram operated by the TMSV, with an image of the Zoo horse tram at the Royal Park gates, and the story of the tram on the rear along with conditions of travel. ...Ticket - printed on card - for the Zoo Horse Tram operated by the TMSV, with an image of the Zoo horse tram at the Royal Park gates, and the story of the tram on the rear along with conditions of travel. No. 7989. See Reg Item 5993 for a copy print of the original image.On rear in ink "My father took me on this tram - 1922" and "Edna Caddell Leckie"trams, tramways, tickets, tmsv, zoo tram, royal park -
University of Melbourne, Burnley Campus ArchivesAlbum - Colour slides, Arboreal Enclosure Royal Melbourne Zoo, 1977-1981
... Arboreal Enclosure Royal Melbourne Zoo...Show construction of the Arboreal Enclosure at the Royal Melbourne Zoo between 1971 and 1981. Also other views of the zoo. ...Show construction of the Arboreal Enclosure at the Royal Melbourne Zoo between 1971 and 1981. Also other views of the zoo. ...Approximately 300 slides, mostly labelled. Show construction of the Arboreal Enclosure at the Royal Melbourne Zoo between 1971 and 1981. Also other views of the zoo. In compartmentalised wooden box. Includes handwritten list of dates, animals, toxic plants, other plants for particular uses, etc. Not scanned.arboreal enclosure, royal melbourne zoo, animals, toxic plants, plants -
Greensborough Historical SocietyPhotograph - Digital image, Charles Marshall et al, Cairo Zoo, 1918_
... Cairo Zoo...This photograph shows a giraffe at Cairo Zoo....Cairo Zoo Photograph - Digital image Charles Marshall John Gibson ...This photograph shows a giraffe at Cairo Zoo.Digital copy of black and white photograph. charles marshall, world war 1 -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Werribee Open Range Zoo, c1989
... Werribee Open Range Zoo...The photograph was taken when the children from Bulla Primary School were taken on an excursion to Werribee Park Open Range Zoo as p[art of their environmental studies. ...Werribee Mansion Werribee Park Open Range Zoo Bulla Primary School Wild Buffalo school excursions A non-digital coloured photograph of four buffalo grazing and resting in an open enclosure Werribee Open Range Zoo Photograph ...The photograph was taken when the children from Bulla Primary School were taken on an excursion to Werribee Park Open Range Zoo as p[art of their environmental studies. On that day they were taken of a tour of the mansion and enjoyed seeing a variety of exotic animals in the Open Range Zoo.The excursion was included into the Children's environmental studies.A non-digital coloured photograph of four buffalo grazing and resting in an open enclosure werribee mansion, werribee park open range zoo, bulla primary school, wild buffalo, school excursions -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Werribee Open Range Zoo, c1989
... Werribee Open Range Zoo...The children from Bulla Primary School were on a school excursion to Werribee Park Mansion and Open Range Zoo when this photograph was taken. They spent the day taken into the mansion before moving onto the zoo where they saw a variety of exotic animals wandering freely in large fenced allotments....Werribee Open Range Zoo Photograph ...The children from Bulla Primary School were on a school excursion to Werribee Park Mansion and Open Range Zoo when this photograph was taken. They spent the day taken into the mansion before moving onto the zoo where they saw a variety of exotic animals wandering freely in large fenced allotments.The excursion was part of the children's environmental studies. A non-digital coloured photograph of a group of children gathered outside a grand mansion. bulla primary school, werribee park open range zoo, werribee mansion -
Sunbury Family History and Heritage Society Inc.Photograph, Werribee Park Open Range Zoo, c1989
... Werribee Park Open Range Zoo...The photograph was taken when children from the Bulla primary School went on a school excursion to Werribee Park Mansion and Open Range Zoo. After doing a tour of the mansion the children stopped along the path to do some exercises together before moving on to the zoo. ...Werribee Park Open Range Zoo Photograph Bulla Primary School ...The photograph was taken when children from the Bulla primary School went on a school excursion to Werribee Park Mansion and Open Range Zoo. After doing a tour of the mansion the children stopped along the path to do some exercises together before moving on to the zoo. The excursion was part of their environmental and nature studies. The excursion to Werribee to the mansion and the zoo was included into the children's environmental and history studies. School excursions also add to their social interaction beyond the classrooms.A non-digital coloured photograph of a group of young children doing exercises in a park with a mansion in the middle distance.werribee mansion, werribee park open range zoo, bulla primary school, school excursions. -
Mission to Seafarers VictoriaPhotograph, Anne Treverton Goldsmith (nee Lobb), At the Zoo, Jan. 1sr 1908, A Group, 1 January 1908
... At the Zoo, Jan. 1sr 1908, A Group......zoo...Mission to Seafarers Victoria 717 Flinders Street Docklands melbourne lhlg picnic zoo loch etive Written in pencil: 3/4/4 Small monochrome photograph, group photograph of seamen At the Zoo, Jan. 1sr 1908, A Group Photograph Photograph Anne Treverton Goldsmith (nee Lobb) ...Small monochrome photograph, group photograph of seamenWritten in pencil: 3/4/4lhlg, picnic, zoo, loch etive -
Friends of Ballarat Botanical Gardens History GroupPlan - Elevation Design for Entrance to Zoo
... Elevation Design for Entrance to Zoo......Zoo...Friends of Ballarat Botanical Gardens History Group George Longley Building Gillies Street North entrance Ballarat West 3350 Historical Ballaarat Botanical Gardens Zoo Entrance design Plan photocopy Elevation Design for Entrance to Zoo Plan Elevation Design for Entrance to Zoo ...Historical photocopyballaarat botanical gardens, zoo, entrance design, plan -
National Vietnam Veterans Museum (NVVM)Photograph, Gibbons, Denis, Saigon Zoo Visit
... Saigon Zoo Visit...A female Vietnamese Interpreter and an Army Liaison visit the Saigon Zoo during a break in their hectic program....Saigon Zoo Visit Photograph Gibbons, Denis ...Denis Gibbons (1937 – 2011) Trained with the Australian Army, before travelling to Vietnam in January 1966, Denis stayed with the 1st Australian Task Force in Nui Dat working as a photographer. For almost five years Gibbons toured with nine Australian infantry battalions, posting compelling war images from within many combat zones before being flown out in late November 1970 after sustaining injuries. The images held within the National Vietnam Veterans Museum make up the Gibbons Collection. A coloured photograpf of Members of the Feb 70 S.A. Concert Party, The Wills Sisters Anne & Susan (both in yellow) accompanied by Beverly Braidwood and Tamara Osypenko. A female Vietnamese Interpreter and an Army Liaison visit the Saigon Zoo during a break in their hectic program.wills sisters, beverly braidwood, tamara osypenko, entertainers, saigon zoo, south australian concert party, gibbons collection catalogue, anne wills, susan wills, feb 70 s.a. concert party, vietnamese interpreters, army liaison, denis gibbons
