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100-775: The Saint Louis Zoo , officially known as the Saint Louis Zoological Park , is a zoo in Forest Park , St. Louis, Missouri . It is recognized as a leading zoo in animal management, research, conservation, and education. The zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). Admission is free based on a public subsidy from a cultural tax district, the Metropolitan Zoological Park and Museum District (ZMD); fees are charged for some special attractions. A special feature

200-737: A polar bear called Kali. Two grizzly bears named Huck and Finn arrived for the opening of Grizzly Ridge in 2017. The Fragile Forest and Jungle of the Apes feature Western lowland gorilla , chimpanzee , and Sumatran orangutan in a naturalized outdoor setting. Penguin and Puffin Coast displays a variety of water birds including the gentoo penguin , horned puffin , Humboldt penguin , king penguin , Southern rockhopper penguin , and tufted puffin . The red panda and black-tailed prairie dog are also displayed in The Wild. Historic Hill contains

300-567: A $ 1.1 million restoration with the addition of new restrooms and a catering kitchen. The eastern archways of the building were removed (thereby opening the building to its original state), new lighting was installed, and the twin towers of the building were reconstructed. The Forest Park Golf Course , also known as the Courses at Forest Park or the Norman Probstein Community Golf Course , opened in 1912 as

400-504: A $ 16 million facility that includes different landscapes and exhibits about the polar bear's relationship with the Arctic ecosystem. Its first resident is named Kali, an orphaned polar bear donated to the zoo by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service . In 2017, the zoo added Centene Grizzly Ridge, an $ 11.1 million, 7,000 sq ft state-of-the-art habitat that replaced the bear grottoes built in 1921, which were used until 2015 when they were closed for

500-510: A 75-foot (23 m) waterfall northwest of the Art Museum and named for the waterfalls that flowed down Art Hill during the 1904 World's Fair. The park also has Round Lake and Jefferson Lake, the latter stocked with fish for anglers. The Missouri Department of Conservation assists with the operation of six fish hatchery lakes at the park. In the early 2000s, the lakes were drained, deepened, aerated and restocked with fish. A new bridge over

600-521: A cost of about $ 250,000. When the CWA began in eastern Connecticut, it could hire only 480 workers out of 1,500 who registered for jobs. Projects undertaken included work on city utility systems , public buildings, parks, and roads. Rural areas profited, with most labor being directed to roads and community schools. CWA officials gave preference to veterans with dependents, but considerable political favoritism determined which North Dakotans got jobs. Although

700-767: A dental procedure. The zookeepers euthanized him afterwards. The St. Louis Zoo is currently developing a second campus in north St. Louis County, with a target opening date of 2027. This $ 230 million, 425-acre campus will be called the St. Louis Zoo Wildcare Park and focus on endangered ungulate species and enormous habitats. The proposed initial list of animals includes Giraffe, Grevy's zebra, Greater kudu, Addax, Bongo, Roan antelope, Somali wild ass, Przewalski's horse, Scimitar-horned oryx, Waterbuck, Nile lechwe, Banteng, various Gazelle species, Southern white rhinoceros, Eland, Sable antelope, Bactrian camel, and Ostrich. Proposed attractions include safari rides, an observation tower, glamping, and

800-462: A diverse patronage, including tourists and local visitors, visitors to park institutions, and special event patrons, with roughly one third of patrons living within ten miles (16 km) of the park, another third between 10 and 30 miles (48 km), and another third living beyond 30 miles (48 km) from the park. 88 percent of park visitors drive to the park, while the remaining 12 percent are split between public transit and walking or bicycling to

900-531: A gift shop, and a small aquarium. Dinoroarus closed in early 2024 to make way for the Children's Zoo's permanent successor, the Henry A. Jubel Foundation Destination Discovery, which began construction by October 2024, slated for a 2026 opening date. The Wild is home to Grizzly Ridge, McDonnell Polar Bear Point, Fragile Forest, Jungle of the Apes, and Penguin and Puffin Coast. McDonnell Polar Bear Point features

1000-468: A greatly increased variety of birds and wildlife. They provide a richer experience for walkers and bikers in the park, and the restored areas are full of birdsong. In 1973, Barnes-Jewish Hospital , located across Kingshighway from the eastern edge of the park, leased an area of land in Forest Park located to its south for construction of an underground parking garage. After construction was complete,

1100-666: A guide, in 1874 the General Assembly passed the Forest Park Act, which established the park and created a county-wide property tax to fund it. In November 1874, the Missouri Supreme Court upheld the new law and referred all questions of land ownership and value to the circuit court. The largest parcels of land needed for the park belonged to Thomas Skinker, Charles P. Chouteau, Julia Maffitt, and William Forsyth, who in 1874 and 1875 sold their land to

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1200-607: A lake with an island. On the island is the Nathan Frank Bandstand, which was built using funds donated by local businessman Nathan Frank in 1926. The bandstand, in the classical style , replaced an earlier structure with Asian motifs. In the early 2000s, the landscaping of the area was restored by the Flora Conservancy and the St. Louis Parks Department to a design by Oehme, van Sweden and Associates ; more than 27,000 perennial flowers were planted in

1300-595: A local non-profit group, operates its headquarters in the building. Other groups in the building include the Missouri Department of Conservation and Older Adults Services and Information Systems (OASIS). The restoration included establishment of the Forest Perk Cafe, a coffee and sandwich shop. The building is the base of the World's Fair Bike Rental, which rents cruiser bicycles for public use in

1400-550: A mixed-use development that will link the complex with the adjacent Dogtown neighborhood, and an "iconic" connection of the two sites over Interstate 64. Most importantly, it was to shift all parking to the hospital site, freeing up roughly nine acres currently used as a surface lot for additional exhibits. In June 2022, a five-year-old eastern black rhinoceros named Moyo was permanently transferred to Alabama's Birmingham Zoo to eventually develop his own family. Unfortunately in late January 2024, Moyo suffered severe complications after

1500-509: A month and giving jobs to four million people. CWA workers laid 12 million feet of sewer pipe and built or improved 255,000 miles of roads, 40,000 schools, 3,700 playgrounds , and nearly 1,000 airports. The program was praised by Alf Landon , who later ran against Roosevelt in the 1936 election . Representative of the work are one county's accomplishments in less than five months, from November 1933 to March 1934. Grand Forks County, North Dakota put 2,392 unemployed workers on its payroll at

1600-401: A much greater variety of birds and wildlife, which have settled in the new natural habitats. An 1864 plan for a large park in the city limits was rejected by St. Louis voters. In 1872, St. Louis developer Hiram Leffingwell proposed a 1,000-acre (4.0 km ) park about three miles (5 km) outside the city limits near land which he owned. After a period of intense lobbying by Leffingwell,

1700-462: A museum. In March 2023, the St. Louis Zoo unveiled its first electric C.P. Huntington locomotive, named after Mary Meachum. The Emerson Zooline Railroad will eventually replace its remaining diesel-powered locomotives with the electric model. The following people have served as directors of the zoo: The Saint Louis Zoo is divided into six zones: Lakeside Crossing, River's Edge, The Wild, Discovery Corner, Historic Hill, and Red Rocks. Located in

1800-476: A music stand and podium, and dedicated a statue of Edward Bates , the attorney general under President Abraham Lincoln. By the early 1890s, streetcar lines reached the park, carrying nearly 3 million visitors a year. A zoological gardens had been established around 1876 in Fairgrounds Park, on the north side of the city; its animals were eventually transferred to the new Forest Park facility. From

1900-604: A nine-hole golf course . The original course was designed by Scotsman Robert Foulis , an employee of the Old Course at St Andrews , while a second and third set of nine holes were finished in 1913 and 1915. In 1929, the Forest Park Golf Course was home to the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship . Between 2001 and 2004, the three courses and the clubhouse were rebuilt under the direction of course designer Stan Gentry . The rebuilding project initially

2000-774: A part of the St. Louis Zoo), and the Grand Basin, located at the foot of Art Hill, which was the location of the Festival Hall and cascades at the fair. Though often mistakenly counted among relics of the fair, the World's Fair Pavilion in Forest Park is a later structure, constructed in 1909 with proceeds from the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. The Palace of the Arts, a building now known as the Saint Louis Art Museum in Forest Park,

2100-486: A sacred cow, a sandhill crane, 20 prairie dogs, a dromedary camel, eagles, ducks, elk, foxes, geese, swans, rabbits, a raccoon, a China sheep, opossums, a buzzard, owls, and peafowl, among other animals. The head of the Parks Department, Dwight Davis , voiced his opinion against Forest Park—that is, until the city set aside 77 acres (31 ha) in the park in which to establish a zoological park. A five-man board

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2200-599: A trauma center in North St. Louis . In the February 2007 revised proposal the hospital also agreed to retain 15 percent of the land as green space. Despite considerable protests, the proposal advanced to the St. Louis Board of Aldermen . An activist group called Citizens to Protect Forest Park gathered 28,000 signatures to place a ballot measure that would require citywide voter approval of all leases or sales of park land. But,

2300-699: A water fairway; and the Redbud is very hilly and the most challenging layout of the three. One glass-enclosed clubhouse serves all three courses, and it includes a restaurant open to all park users known as Ruthie's Grill. After the completion of the renovations, the Forest Park Golf Course was named the Best Golf Course in St. Louis by the local alternative newspaper , the Riverfront Times . The Highlands Golf and Tennis Center , formerly known as Triple A Golf and Tennis Club , opened in 1897 on

2400-495: A zoo if there should be one. Fairground Park, Carondolet Park, the Creve Coeur area, and Tower Grove Park were some of the places suggested in newspaper articles and letters to the editors and to civic groups. Some concerned citizens residing near Oakland Avenue, south of Forest Park, expressed their displeasure with a zoo in the park because of the smell of the animals. The zoo initially held 51 deer and antelope, 11 buffaloes,

2500-433: Is 40-foot long and used 120,000 pounds of concrete. The design allows kids to climb on the turtle's shells and in their open mouths. The Dwight Davis Tennis Center is a tennis facility with 19 lighted tennis courts and a clubhouse, named after St. Louis tennis player Dwight Davis . The facility offers tennis training programs, and sponsors tournaments. It hosts the St. Louis Aces, a local tennis singles team, who play in

2600-666: Is 55 feet (17 m) high, and it was built in 1936 using funds from the Works Progress Administration . The Jewel Box was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2000. In 2002, the Jewel Box received a $ 3.5 million renovation, which included the removal and reinstallation of interior plantings, upgrades to the heating and air conditioning systems, and modifications to allow the building to be used for catered events. Turtle Park

2700-422: Is a sculpture park created by Bob Cassilly located at Oakland Avenue and Tamm Avenue. The park contains concrete sculptures of seven turtle species that are indigenous to Missouri , a clutch of eggs and a snake. The three large turtles are a snapping turtle , a Mississippi map turtle and a red-eared slider and the four smaller turtles are a stinkpot turtle and three box turtles . The snapping turtle

2800-637: Is home to several species of big cats . Species featured here are the African lion , Amur leopard , Amur tiger , jaguar , puma , and snow leopard . The species present at Antelope Habitats are the addax , babirusa , Bactrian camel , banteng , Central Chinese goral , Grévy's zebra , lesser kudu , Nile lechwe , okapi , reticulated giraffe , Sichuan takin , Soemmerring's gazelle , Somali wild ass , Speke's gazelle , and Transcapsian urial . Non-ungulates found in Antelope Habitats include

2900-557: Is home to the Bayer Insectarium , where most of the zoo's invertebrates are found. Represented species include leafcutter ant , flower mantis , Vietnamese walking stick , Atlas beetle , American burying beetle , sunburst diving beetle , water scorpion , brown widow spider, brown recluse spider , yellow garden spiders , Platymeris biguttatus , cobalt blue tarantula , Texas brown tarantula , and Egyptian fattail scorpion . Until 2021, Discovery Corner also included

3000-419: Is home to the zoo's monkeys and lemurs . Species included are Allen's swamp monkey , Coquerel's sifaka , cotton-top tamarin , black-and-white colobus monkey, mongoose lemur , ring-tailed lemur , spectacled langur , and white-faced saki . Primates have some freedom to move between indoor and outdoor enclosures as they prefer. Red Rocks features Big Cat Country and Antelope Habitats. Big Cat Country

3100-431: Is one of the oldest structures in the park and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places . The original Cabanne House was built in 1819 by Jean Pierre Cabanné, a French Creole fur trader and merchant. His descendants used it as a farmhouse until they sold the land to the city in 1875. When the park was opened, the farmhouse was converted into a lodge. It was demolished in the 1880s. The current Cabanne House

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3200-488: Is one of the only parts of the zoo requiring an admission price. Sea Lion Sound is home to the California sea lion and harbor seal and features an underwater viewing tunnel that allows visitors to see animals swimming around. River's Edge is home to a variety of animals represented from four continents: North America , Africa (Savannah and Nile), and Asia . The North America exhibit features fish and wildlife from

3300-586: Is the 2 ft ( 610 mm ) narrow-gauge Emerson Zooline Railroad with passenger trains pulled by Chance Rides C.P. Huntington locomotives that encircle the zoo, stopping at the more popular attractions. The city purchased its first exhibit, the Flight Cage, from the Smithsonian Institution following the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair . After the zoo was established in 1910, new exhibits, areas, and buildings were added through

3400-562: The Great Forest Park Balloon Race (a hot air balloon competition), LouFest Music Festival (August 27–28, 2011), the Shakespeare Festival of St. Louis , the St. Louis Earth Day Festival, and the St. Louis African Arts Festival. The annual St. Louis Wine Festival, Beer Heritage Festival, and St. Louis Micro-Fest (a microbrewery showcase festival) also are hosted in Forest Park. In winter months,

3500-777: The Guam kingfisher , which is extinct in the wild . The Bird Garden contains outdoor bird enclosures. The Herpetarium houses most of the zoo's reptiles and amphibians , including the critically endangered Jamaican iguana , Chinese alligator , McCord's box turtle , Panamanian golden frog , and Arakan forest turtle . Other species include the Komodo dragon , green anaconda , mountain chicken , spotted turtle , false gharial , king cobra , Gila monster , frill-necked lizard , Aldabra giant tortoise , tuatara , reticulated python , tiger salamander , three-toed amphiuma , pancake tortoise , and over two dozen species of pit vipers from around

3600-580: The Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904 and the 1904 Summer Olympics . Bounded by Washington University in St. Louis , Skinker Boulevard, Lindell Boulevard, Kingshighway Boulevard, and Oakland Avenue, it is known as the " Heart of St. Louis " and features a variety of attractions, including the St. Louis Zoo , the St. Louis Art Museum , the Missouri History Museum , and the St. Louis Science Center . Since

3700-583: The McDonnell Planetarium , is located within the park and is connected to the main building by an enclosed footbridge . In addition to the Orthwein StarBay planetarium show featuring more than 9,000 stars on an 80-foot (24 m) ceiling, the facility offers exhibits about living in space. It also hosts monthly public stargazing events co-sponsored by the St. Louis Astronomical Society. The Missouri History Museum , located on

3800-552: The Missouri and Mississippi Rivers containing Bigmouth buffalo fish , spotted gar , and spotted tilapia . The African Savanna exhibit displays eastern black rhinoceroses , the African painted dog , black rhinoceros , and red river hog . The African Nile exhibit features the cheetah , dwarf mongoose , hippopotamus , and spotted hyena . The Asia exhibit features the Asian elephant and Malayan sun bear . Discovery Corner

3900-660: The Missouri General Assembly authorized the city to purchase the land; however, city taxpayers challenged the purchase in court, and in 1873, the Missouri Supreme Court overturned the authorization. The next year another developer, Andrew McKinley, prepared another proposal that met legal challenges. The tract selected that became Forest Park included a heavily forested 1,326-acre (5.37 km ) area west of Kingshighway along Olive Street (now Lindell Boulevard). Using McKinley's proposal as

4000-815: The Municipal Theatre Association of St. Louis , has operated in Forest Park since 1916. The first production, As You Like It by William Shakespeare , predated the current building by one year; as part of an advertising convention, St. Louis constructed the Municipal Theatre in 1917. Starting in 1919, the Muny was incorporated, and more than 1,500 seats in the 11,000-seat amphitheater were reserved as permanently free. The Jewel Box , an art deco greenhouse , operates as an event venue and horticultural facility. The building has nearly 7,500 square feet (700 m ) of display space and

4100-468: The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra offers a free outdoor concert. The St. Louis Art Museum sponsors free outdoor film showings in the summer on the hill. Fair St. Louis was held for the first time here in 2014, due to renovations at the Gateway Arch grounds, which presents new opportunities for the fair. The fair got off to a smooth start on July 3. St. Louis's Forest Park is considered one of

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4200-515: The red kangaroo as well as several birds in mixed-exhibits with the ungulates, such as the East African crowned crane , saddle-billed stork , and Sarus crane . Forest Park (St. Louis) Forest Park is a public park in western St. Louis, Missouri . It is a prominent civic center and covers 1,326 acres (5.37 km ). Opened in 1876, more than a decade after its proposal, the park has hosted several significant events, including

4300-458: The 1,100-seat Stadium Court. In 2006 and 2007, several courts were refinished, while new shade awnings and benches were provided for players and spectators. The Boathouse at Forest Park is both a restaurant and boat rental facility. Since the opening of Forest Park in 1876, boating has been an activity in the park; in 1894, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch paid more than 6,000 workers to expand one of

4400-417: The 1904 Flight Cage, a herpetarium, and primate house. A sixth zoo zone, known as Lakeside Crossing, features several dining and retail options. For animal care, the zoo also features a veterinary hospital and animal nutrition center. The Saint Louis Science Center , across Interstate 64 on the southern edge of Forest Park, received slightly more than a million visitors in 2010. Part of the science center,

4500-615: The Bayer Insectarium, including the Butterfly House, was built. The North America (Missouri and Mississippi Rivers) portion of River's Edge opened in 2001. In 2002, the third phase, featuring habitats of South America and Africa, opened with hippos, rhinos, warthogs, carmine bee-eaters, capybaras, and giant anteaters. In 2003, the Penguin and Puffin Coast opened with both outdoor and indoor exhibits. Also new that year

4600-872: The Bear Pits were built. The zoo continued to expand with construction of the Primate House in 1923 and the Reptile House in 1927. The new Bird House was built in 1930. With the coming of the Great Depression, revenues were down and construction of new exhibits slowed at the zoo. In 1935, the Antelope House was built with the help of the Civil Works Administration , a program of President Franklin D. Roosevelt 's New Deal . This burst of construction ended in 1939 with

4700-467: The Bird House, Bird Garden, Herpetarium, Flight Cage and Cypress Swamp, Primate House, and Primate Canopy Trails. The Bird House features birds as varied as bald eagle , rhinoceros hornbill , hyacinth macaw , burrowing owl , toco toucan , Cape thick-knee , golden pheasant , kookaburra , Mariana fruit-dove , king vulture , horned guan , superb starling , tawny frogmouth , congo peafowl , and

4800-501: The Emerson Children's Zoo, which had many educational features, such as the see-through slide through the otter pool and many birds, snakes, frogs, and other animals that volunteers and staff bring out for the kids to see up close. As of March 2016, the zoo has Tasmanian devils in this section. The Children's Zoo closed in 2021 and was temporarily replaced with Dinoroarus, a walking path featuring several animatronic dinosaurs,

4900-555: The Fair's buildings, it was built on a wood framework with staff, and was a temporary structure. The pavilion opened in 1910 as a gift from the Louisiana Purchase Exposition Company and helped to fulfill their promise to restore the park after the 1904 World's Fair. Designed by English architect Henry Wright , the pavilion originally cost $ 35,000 to build. In the early 2000s, the building underwent

5000-670: The Jewel Box greenhouse hosts a poinsettia show with holiday decorations. Forest Park also hosts athletic events, such as the St. Louis Track Club Frostbite Series (an annual road race event), the Midnight Ramble (a nighttime bicycling event), the Forest Park Cross Country Festival, and a variety of run-walk fundraisers. The park has also hosted the USA Cross Country Championships . On Art Hill in early September,

5100-585: The Louisiana Purchase Exposition, is located in the only permanent structure built for the fair. The building, designed by Cass Gilbert , houses a comprehensive art museum with particular depth in Oceanic art , Pre-Columbian art , ancient Chinese bronzes , and 20th-century German art. The museum began an expansion and renovation project in January 2010 under the direction of architect David Chipperfield . The construction relocated surface parking underneath

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5200-682: The Steinberg Skating Rink, the Boathouse Restaurant (with boat rentals), the Forest Park Golf Course, the Highlands Golf and Tennis Center, handball courts, and fields for softball, baseball, soccer, cricket, rugby, and archery. The park also features over 30 miles of walking and cycling paths. The most visited feature of the park is the Saint Louis Zoo , a free zoo that opened in 1910. In 2010,

5300-423: The addition and created a new lower-level gallery, with a total of more than 200,000 square feet (19,000 m ) of new building area which allows display of more of the collection. The project includes new landscaping, with groves of white birch trees. A site-specific sculpture was commissioned from Andy Goldsworthy , who completed installation of Stone Sea in the fall of 2012. The Muny , officially known as

5400-659: The addition of the Ape House. In 1939, the zoo acquired two giant pandas. Their names were Happy and Pao Pei. Happy died in 1945 and Pao Pei in 1952. The Stupp Memorial Pheasantry and the lion arena, now the Sea Lion Arena, were built in 1954. Three years later, the Elephant House and its arena and moated yards were constructed. Major construction started on the zoo again in 1971 when the Aquatic House

5500-670: The area. The Dennis and Judith Jones Visitor and Education Center , formerly known as the Lindell Pavilion , was built in 1892 as a streetcar station for the Lindell Railway. Designed by Eames and Young , the Visitor Center is in the Spanish Revival style. In 1904, it was occupied by tenants of the World's Fair. In 1914, the building opened as a golf shop and locker room, which it remained until

5600-600: The ballot measure was enacted in April 2007, two months after the revised lease was approved by the Board of Aldermen. Forest Park has more than 12 million visitors per year, surpassing the number of annual visitors to both Busch Stadium and the Gateway Arch National Park combined. In 2022, Forest Park was named the nation’s best city park in the annual USA Today Readers’ Choice Awards. The park has

5700-431: The beginning officials sought public transportation to the park. Several routes were evaluated. It was not electric streetcars , but rather cable cars that first gave access to Forest Park. Erastus Wells ’ Missouri Railway was a cable car line (then known as a “cable road”) that ran down Olive Street. It was extended in stages. Access to Lindell Blvd was denied, but a route down Boyle to Maryland and then to Kingshighway

5800-415: The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its architectural significance. Near the Cascades waterfall on the western edge of the park is an 1876 statue of Edward Bates , who was US Attorney General under President Abraham Lincoln . He had been a prominent attorney and judge in St. Louis, and also assisted in freedom suits by slaves . His was the first statue installed in

5900-409: The center of the zoo, Lakeside Crossing has a variety of food services and shopping destinations, and a grassy plaza where visitors can sit and relax. Also featured here are Caribbean Cove and Sea Lion Sound. Caribbean Cove is a shallow touch pool underneath a large pavilion that features the cownose ray , Southern stingray , bonnethead sharks , and bamboo shark . Open during the warmer months, it

6000-481: The city. The city purchased the land for $ 849,058, with another million dollars dedicated to maintenance and improvement. The state of the parkland in 1876 was rural: on the eastern and western edges of the park were unpaved roads (Kingshighway and Skinker Road, respectively). Flowing through the northern lowlands and turning southeast in the park was the River des Peres , which at times was very low while in some seasons could flood large areas. The southwestern part of

6100-404: The close of skating season a charity pond hockey tournament is held on the rink. A dining and concession area, known as the Snowflake Cafe, offers American cuisine and alcohol . During the early 2000s, the rink underwent a $ 1.4 million renovation that included a new rink surface, an ice-making system, and a new light and sound system. In addition, the parking lot for the rink was moved from

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6200-432: The construction of Grizzly Ridge. Grizzly Ridge opened 15 September 2017 and is now home to two orphaned grizzlies from Montana. Huckleberry, or Huck, and his sister Finley were given to the zoo by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. By the end of the project in 2014, the zoo had exceeded this goal by $ 14 million, which funded not only Grizzly Ridge or Polar Bear Point, but also Sea Lion Sound (a new and improved way of viewing

6300-538: The decades to improve care of the animals, the range of animals and habitats shown, and education and interpretation. The head of the male lesser kudu , with his elegant spiraled horns, is the symbol of the Saint Louis Zoo. In September 2017, the Saint Louis Zoo teamed up with the Missouri Botanical Garden and Washington University in St. Louis in a conservation effort known as the Living Earth Collaborative. The collaborative, run by Washington University scientist Jonathan Losos , seeks to promote further understanding of

6400-431: The early 2000s, it has carried out a $ 100 million restoration through a public-private partnership aided by its Master Plan. Changes have extended to improving landscaping and habitat as well. The park's acreage includes meadows and trees and a variety of ponds, manmade lakes, and freshwater streams. For several years, the park has been restoring prairie and wetlands areas of the park. It has reduced flooding and attracted

6500-473: The early 2000s. After the renovation of the adjacent Forest Park Golf Course, the building was converted into the park Visitor Center. The $ 4 million conversion project restored the clock tower and installed new heating and air conditioning systems, public restrooms, and locker rooms. Part of the 22,000-square-foot (2,000 m ) facility is available as an event venue known as the Trolley Room, which can accommodate up to 400 guests, while Forest Park Forever,

6600-462: The facility hosted Davis Cup qualifying matches in 1927, 1946, and 1961. Judy Rankin began her golfing career at Triple A Golf and Tennis Club as a young girl. Between 2008 and 2010 the Highlands underwent a complete reconstruction, with a new nine-hole golf course, the installation of clay tennis courts, a new 30-stall lit driving range , and the construction of a full-service bar and restaurant known as Keagan's Pub and Patio. The Cascades are

6700-421: The fair's directors gave the balance of the remaining profits from the fair toward the construction of a monument to Thomas Jefferson , on the former site of the fair's entry gates; when completed in 1913 it became the Missouri History Museum building. Other structures left from the fair include the St. Louis Art Museum, the Apotheosis of St. Louis (a statue of French King Louis IX ), the 1904 Bird Cage, (now

6800-440: The first time that African Americans were allowed to compete. George Kessler , the fair's landscape architect, dramatically changed the park: the wetlands areas in the western part of the park were drained and converted into water features and five connected lakes. Sewer and water lines installed during the fair remained for public use in the park. After the fair, thousands of trees were planted and vistas were created. In 1909,

6900-401: The hospital 90 years of tenancy. Under the proposal, the annual rent would increase from $ 150,000 to between $ 1.6 and $ 2.2 million. The hospital sought to lease more than 12 acres (49,000 m ) for which it would pay $ 2.2 million, or as an alternative it would lease the current 9.3 acres (38,000 m ) for which it would pay $ 1.6 million a year. Under a January 2007 revised proposal from

7000-440: The hospital, the city would receive $ 2 million for the lease of 9.3 acres (38,000 m ), while the hospital would agree to make improvements to two areas in Forest Park. In February 2007, to gain the support of city Comptroller Darlene Green (one of three members of the St. Louis Board of Apportionment and Estimate, a board that recommends lease proposals to the full Board of Aldermen), the hospital agreed to build, fund, and staff

7100-401: The important buildings and roads. The electrical plug and the wall outlet were also displayed. Two of the more notable technological achievements demonstrated were the x-ray machine and the baby incubator. At one time the River des Peres ran openly through the park, but due to sanitary concerns, a portion was put underground in a wooden box shortly before the 1904 World's Fair. In the 1930s,

7200-416: The lakes in the park. In the early 2000s, a new boathouse opened with access to both Post-Dispatch Lake and the Grand Basin at the foot of Art Hill. The boathouse, open year-round, offers paddle boat rentals. It was designed by St. Louis architect Laurent Torno in the style of early 20th-century Midwestern boathouse cottages. Pagoda Circle , located in front of the Muny, is a circular drive located around

7300-621: The largest urban parks in the United States. It is approximately 500 acres larger than New York City 's Central Park . Forest Park is home to five of the region's major institutions: the St. Louis Art Museum, the St. Louis Zoo, the St. Louis Science Center, the Missouri History Museum, and the Muny amphitheater. It has several recreational facilities, including the Dwight Davis Tennis Center ,

7400-537: The nearby Primate House built in 1925. It replaced some of the outside primate habitats connected to the Primate House. In 2013, the Saint Louis Zoo began a massive expansion of facilities and space for both visitors and staff. Most notable is a new development planned on 13.5 acres on the grounds of the former Forest Park Hospital, across Interstate 64 from the zoo campus. Once completed, the new facility would feature offices and classrooms, year-round exhibits,

7500-595: The north end of the facility to the south end. A prairie and wetlands river area replaced the north parking lot, providing a walking path and birdwatching area near the adjacent lake. Located on Government Hill, the World's Fair Pavilion sits on the site of the 1904 World's Fair's large Missouri State Building, that burned down 10 days before the closing of the fair. Though the Missouri Building had many features (including partial air conditioning), like most of

7600-465: The northern edge of the park, received slightly more than 500,000 visitors in 2010 to both its permanent and temporary exhibits. The museum has two continuing exhibits: Seeking St. Louis , two galleries focusing on the history of Greater St. Louis ; and the 1904 World's Fair, Looking Back at Looking Forward , an exhibit of artifacts from the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. The museum had a 16-ton statue of Thomas Jefferson sculpted by Karl Bitter , which

7700-475: The park was heavily forested land, and the east-west Clayton Road ran through the southern part of the park. A railroad right-of-way cut through the northeast corner of the park. Maximillian G. Kern and Julius Pitzman , the Prussian-born St. Louis surveyor, designed the park's original plan. The park was dedicated June 24, 1876, with a crowd of about 50,000 in attendance. Officials and a band occupied

7800-660: The park. The Steinberg Skating Rink opened in November 1957 after a donation by the Steinberg Charitable Trust. Etta Steinberg, the wife of Mark C. Steinberg , gave more than $ 600,000 toward the $ 935,000 cost of the rink. The rink is open for ice skating during the winter and sand volleyball during the summer. While ice hockey was regularly played on the rink during the 1950s and 60s, its large dimensions and lack of regulation dasher-board systems prevent it from allowing regular play today; however, at

7900-629: The park. Originally located at the southeast entrance to the park, it was moved during the 1950s during construction of Interstate 64. Medallions at the base of the statue depict James Eads , Hamilton R. Gamble , Charles Gibson , and Henry S. Geyer . Civil Works Administration The CWA was a project created under the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA). The CWA created construction jobs, mainly improving or constructing buildings and bridges. It ended on March 31, 1934, after spending $ 200 million

8000-572: The park. The park has eleven multi-modal access points, listed below by the edge of the park: The Hampton Avenue entrance is used by about 60 percent of users entering the park; this has led to traffic congestion issues that have become more problematic in recent years. To remedy the problem, traffic has been redirected away from the Hampton park entrance and trolley-replica buses have been used to shuttle patrons. Forest Park hosts several annual St. Louis cultural or entertainment events, including

8100-463: The portion of the River des Peres that runs through Forest Park was diverted entirely underground in huge concrete pipes. More recently, an artificial waterscape linking park lakes has been created. The river remains underground in the park. Since the 2000s, the park has restored numerous areas of prairie and wetlands in the park; these new habitats are serving not only to reduce flooding, but to attract

8200-554: The river that feeds the lakes also was constructed. Kennedy Forest is in the southwest corner of the park, while the Kennedy Woods area is located near the Muny in the center of the park. Kennedy Forest features hiking trails maintained by the Missouri Department of Conservation, while Kennedy Woods includes a walking path through wildflowers and native Missouri plants. The Cabanne House , built in 1876,

8300-454: The sea lions, including a walk-through tunnel), and improvements to other areas of the zoo such as Peabody Hall and River's Edge, among others. The most recent update to the zoo is the addition of the Michael and Quirsis Riney Primate Canopy Trails, a $ 13 million, 35,000 sq ft state-of-the-art outdoor exhibit for the zoo's primates. Primate Canopy Trails opened 12 July 2021 and is connected to

8400-497: The site of the current Forest Park Golf Course; in 1902, the course moved to a 70-acre (280,000 m ) facility near the southeast corner of Forest Park due to the construction of the 1904 World's Fair. The new facility included a nine-hole golf course, tennis, handball and volleyball courts, a running track, and baseball and lacrosse fields. The tennis courts at the Highlands were where player Jimmy Connors began his career, and

8500-483: The surface was restored and a playground was installed; in 1983, the lease was extended to 2050 and the garage was expanded to more than 1,900 spaces. Starting in 2006, the hospital engaged the city to renegotiate the lease to allow for the construction of a building on the site, known as Hudlin Park (although part of Forest Park). The hospital proposal also included an extension of the lease by 46 years to 2096, providing

8600-400: The ways humans can help to preserve the varied natural environments that allow plants, animals, and microbes to survive and thrive. Some of their other ongoing conservation efforts include the #byetobags movement, encouraging the use of reusable bags, and their turtle-tracking program, which tracks location, population, and health of the box turtle population of Forest Park. In 2017 and 2018,

8700-646: The world. In 1904, the Flight Cage was the largest bird cage ever built, and is still one of the world's largest free-flight aviaries at 228 feet (69 m) long, 84 feet (26 m) wide, and 50 feet (15 m) high. The Cypress Swamp is dedicated to North American birds found it the cypress swamps of the southern Mississippi River . Among the birds in the aviary are black-crowned night heron , blue-winged teal , bufflehead duck, cattle egret , double-crested cormorant , great egret , wood duck , northern bobwhite , roseate spoonbill , snowy egret , and American white ibis . Primate House and Primate Canopy Trails

8800-425: The zoo attracted 2.9 million visitors to its collection of more than 18,000 animals. The zoo is divided into five animal zones: the River's Edge, which includes elephants, cheetahs, and hyenas; The Wild, which includes penguins, bears, and great apes; Discovery Zone, which includes a petting zoo ; Red Rocks, which features lions, tigers, and other big cats; and the oldest part of the zoo, Historic Hill, which features

8900-504: The zoo received a donation of the 355 acres (1.44 km) Sears Lehmann farm, located west of St. Louis. It is to be used for the breeding of endangered species and educational purposes. In 1998, new areas were added with the Emerson Children's Zoo. Phase I of River's Edge, which opened in 1999, represented Asia: featuring Asian elephants, cheetahs, dwarf mongoose, and hyenas. In 2000, the Monsanto Insectarium, now called

9000-501: The zoo was chosen by USA Today as the best in the United States. The 1904 St. Louis World's Fair is credited for the birth of the Saint Louis Zoo. The fair brought the world's attention to St. Louis and Forest Park. The Smithsonian Institution constructed a walk-through aviary for the World's Fair. Ten days after the World's Fair closed, the citizens of St. Louis chose to buy the 1904 World's Fair Flight Cage for $ 3,500, rather than have it dismantled and returned to Washington, DC. This

9100-467: The zoo, Big Cat Country and Jungle of the Apes, were constructed in 1976 and 1986, respectively. In 1989, the Living World, a two-story building including classrooms, a reference library and teacher resource center, an auditorium, two exhibit halls emphasizing evolution and ecology, a large gift shop, a restaurant, and offices was built. It was designed by Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum . In 1993,

9200-467: Was appointed to act as the Zoological Board of Control. The number of board members was increased to nine in 1916, the same year the citizens voted to create a tax for the construction of the Saint Louis Zoo, with a 1/5 mill tax. This was said to have been the first zoo in the world that the citizens of a community supported by passing a millage tax. Expansion of the zoo started in 1921, when

9300-505: Was approved. Service began June 1, 1889. In 1901, Forest Park was selected as the location of the 1904 World's Fair, known as the Louisiana Purchase Exposition . The fair opened April 30, 1904, and closed December 1, 1904, and it left the park vastly different. In addition to the fair, the park hosted the diving , swimming , and water polo events for the 1904 Summer Olympics . Fifteen sports offered Olympic competition events, but women could compete only in archery. The 1904 Games were

9400-543: Was built. It continued with the opening of the Emerson Zooline Railroad in 1963, the Charles H. Yalem Children's Zoo, and the animal nursery in 1969. In 1972, the zoo joined the Metropolitan Zoological Park and Museum District and began to receive revenue from a public property tax of 8 cents for every $ 100 assessed. This enabled continued improvements and upgrades of exhibit areas. Two major areas of

9500-546: Was designed by James H. McNamara in 1875, built in the Second Empire style to be the park keeper's house. From 1942, the house was the official residence of the St. Louis Parks and Recreation Commissioner. The City Beautification Commission repaired the building and occupied it for office space beginning in 1967. In the 1980s, the St. Louis Ambassadors , a local civic group, renovated the building. They have since used it as an office building and event venue. In 1985,

9600-404: Was divided into six classifications: painting, etchings and engravings, sculpture, architecture, loan collection, and industrial art. In addition to art displays, many novelties were showcased for the first time at the Fair. Electricity, still considered young at the time, was showcased in a number of ways. Attendees at the Fair were awestruck by the electric lighting, both inside and out, of all of

9700-600: Was funded by St. Louis developer Norman Probstein with a gift of $ 2 million, followed by donations of $ 2 million from Eagle Golf, $ 2.4 million from the Danforth Foundation , $ 4.5 million from Forest Park Forever, and $ 1.6 million from the city of St. Louis. The three rebuilt courses are named for trees in St. Louis: the Hawthorn is a relatively flat and walkable layout; the Dogwood is a somewhat hilly course with

9800-520: Was the Mary Ann Lee Conservation Carousel, featuring unique hand-carved wooden animals representing endangered species at the Saint Louis Zoo. The Donn and Marilyn Lipton Fragile Forest opened in 2005. Caribbean Cove, which features stingrays , opened in 2008. In 2010, the zoo started The Living Promise Campaign , a project that promised to raise $ 120 million to improve the zoo. In 2015, the zoo opened Polar Bear Point,

9900-494: Was the first piece of what would become the Saint Louis Zoo. By 1910, increased interest in a zoo brought together some concerned citizens, and they organized the Zoological Society of St. Louis. In 1914, it was incorporated as an independent civic organization of people interested in a zoo. Meanwhile, the citizens of St. Louis and surrounding municipalities expressed diverse opinions as to the appropriate location of

10000-594: Was unveiled at the opening of the museum in 1913. The museum completed a major expansion in 2000, with the addition of the Emerson Center, a 92,000-square-foot (8,500 m ) building with 24,000 square feet (2,200 m ) of exhibition space, the Lee Auditorium, a 350-seat theater, and space for retail and dining options. The Saint Louis Art Museum , which opened as the Palace of Fine Arts as part of

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