Brookfield Zoo Chicago, the largest zoo in the Chicago metropolitan area, grew from land donated in 1919 by Edith Rockefeller McCormick and opened in 1934 after years of planning, expansion, and Depression-era delays. It quickly drew huge crowds and gained international attention for replacing many traditional cages with moats and ditches. Over time it introduced major attractions and innovations, including the first giant pandas exhibited in the United States, the nation’s first fully indoor bottlenose dolphin exhibit, and Tropic World, once the world’s largest indoor zoo exhibit. In recent decades it has emphasized immersive habitats, renovations, and conservation while remaining a major public institution closely tied to Chicago.

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain