Many of them no longer exist. Surrey Zoo was one of the casualties, yet in its heyday it was an enormous hit with the public. It is the quintessential example of the menagerie-style zoo that struck such a chord with Britons in the 19th century. In its day Surrey\u2019s zoo was the main rival of London Zoo at Regent\u2019s Park. These were, however, very different establishments. Like most early zoos (including those in Dublin, Bristol and Manchester), London\u2019s had lofty ambitions and was aimed at educated society seeking enlightenment.<\/p>\n
Surrey Zoo, on the other hand, offered exoticism, imperial display and commercial entertainment for its fashionable clientele \u2013 all typically Victorian phenomena. A look at its popularity, as well as the activities visitors enjoyed, provides us today with intriguing insights into Victorian ideals and leisure pursuits.<\/p>\n
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The driving force behind the Surrey Zoological Gardens was animal dealer Edward Cross. He had bought a small menagerie in 1814, which he exhibited at the Exeter Exchange, a building on the north side of the Strand in central London. His collection, which attracted such famous figures as William Wordsworth and Lord Byron, included lions, tigers, leopards, monkeys, hyenas, an emu, an Andean condor and a male Asiatic elephant named Chunee.<\/p>\n
The animals were kept in small cages in conditions that were troubling even at the time. Chunee was confined to a small wooden enclosure, and was frequently aggressive. Cross, fearing he might escape, decided to have him put down \u2013 a feat that took 152 musket shots to complete. Press reports of the episode created considerable adverse publicity for Cross.<\/p>\n
By the late 1820s, he was considering the future of the menagerie. Cross wanted to join forces with the new Zoological Society of London (ZSL) that had formed in 1826, establishing London Zoo in 1828. His offer to sell his collection \u2013 on the condition that he also be taken on as manager of the zoo \u2013 was refused three times. ZSL was keen to move away from the idea of a menagerie as spectacle and entertainment. Instead, they were interested in the nascent science of zoology.<\/p>\n
Chunee the elephant was confined to a small wooden enclosure, and was frequently aggressive. Fearing he might escape, Cross decided to have him put down \u2013 a feat that took 152 musket shots to complete <\/blockquote> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>True, there were educational aspects to Cross\u2019s menagerie: some of these animals had never been seen before \u2013 or only rarely \u2013 in England. However, his was primarily a commercial venture; he bought and displayed animals for the entertainment of the public and his own profit.<\/p>\n
By contrast, London Zoo was an innovator in the scientific study of animal life, taxonomy, conservation and captive animal husbandry. Its habitat designs, including the world\u2019s first aquarium, provided exemplars to other zoos. And its staff members became leading authorities on the animals in their care, spreading their growing knowledge of thousands of species through regular publications. Edward Cross was just not their sort of person.<\/p>\n
Forced to find an alternative, Cross decided to sell his menagerie to another fledgling society: the Surrey Zoological and Botanical Institution (which he had co-founded in 1831). It accepted the collection, and Cross became superintendent of the new Surrey Zoological Gardens.<\/p>\n
- Read more | A brief history of London tourism since 1800<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>
Establishing a zoo was a risky venture. New exotic animals had to be sourced and transported to Surrey to populate the larger premises, and the arrival of such creatures was big news in the 1830s. London newspapers regularly reported on acquisitions made by the Surrey Zoological Gardens, naming each ship transporting the animals, and its captain. Excited members of the public waited at the dock to catch a glimpse of a tail or a flash of teeth and claws. Sometimes the animals were unloaded at night to evade the crowds. The papers eagerly printed exquisite drawings of the animals, alongside descriptions of their habitats in exotic locales \u2013 and daring stories of their violent capture.<\/p>\n
Sadly, many animals did not survive the journey to Britain; others died soon after the ship docked. A couple of weeks after the zoo opened, papers reported that a rhinoceros had died during the crossing from the Cape Colony (now part of South Africa).<\/p>\n
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Edward Cross\u2019s menagerie at the Exeter Exchange, c1820. Animals here, such as lions, elephants and monkeys, were confined to small cages and kept in poor conditions (Photo by Heritage-Images \/ Oxford Science Archive \/ akg-images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n A pack of hounds<\/h3>\n
In the 19th century, the British empire<\/a> encompassed colonies in Africa, India, the Americas and Australia, providing rich pickings for British collectors and zoologists. Cross was one of those tapping into the empire\u2019s networks of trade and exploitation to source new animals. Soon after the loss of that unfortunate African rhinoceros, the zoo successfully sourced an Asian rhino from Calcutta (now Kolkata), reportedly owned previously by one of the \u201cRajahs\u201d of India who had traded it for a \u201cfull pack of English hounds\u201d.<\/p>\n
Wealthy collectors returning from their travels would sometimes donate animals to the zoo. In 1832, former naval officer and colonist Captain William Langdon returned from Australia and the Falkland Islands with kangaroos, possums and geese, which he presented to the zoo. Sometimes the animals\u2019 keepers travelled with them. The zoo proudly advertised its \u201cGiraffes attended by Nubian keepers\u201d, who themselves became part of the exotic displays.<\/p>\n
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Even when animals arrived safely, further challenges often arose. Many died simply because the keepers were not knowledgeable enough to care for them. Others escaped. A black swan was reported missing in September 1833, when a \u201chandsome\u201d finder\u2019s fee was offered. There were also human fatalities. In August 1833, one of Cross\u2019s employees, George Chard, was gored to death by a wildebeest he\u2019d whipped in an effort to force it to perform for spectators.<\/p>\n
Such was the enthusiasm for exotic creatures in the Regency era that some animals became celebrities. One of the oldest inmates at the zoo \u2013 one that had been among Cross\u2019s original collection at the Exeter Exchange \u2013 was a mandrill named Happy Jerry. He had been brought to England on a slave ship captured off the Gold Coast (now Ghana) in 1815, reports claimed.<\/p>\n
He had, according to those same reports, been taught to sit in a chair, smoke and drink liquor, and was fed from Cross\u2019s table \u201cas a parlour guest\u201d. Jerry became so famous that George IV<\/a> invited him to dine at Windsor Castle, where the king was said to have been delighted by watching the mandrill eat specially prepared venison.<\/p>\n
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On its opening, the Surrey Zoological and Botanical Institution emphasised its contribution to the new science of zoology. By the 1840s, though, the animals began to be overshadowed by other attractions \u2013 firework displays, historical tableaux comprising 20-metre-high painted sets and trapeze acts. In June 1844, the zoo advertised a \u201cTerrific Representation of the Great Fire of London<\/a> in 1666\u201d as viewed from the Thames. It would include \u201cnew and extraordinary effects\u201d and would be the \u201ccrowning triumph of the pyrotechnic art\u201d.<\/p>\n
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