Detroit Zoological Park

Detroit Zoological Park is a Michigan historical marker in Royal Oak, Oakland County, dedicated 2000.

Oakland County · dedicated 2000 · 8450 West Ten Mile Road, Royal Oak

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When it opened on August 1, 1928, the Detroit Zoological Park was unique and progressive in its design. The Detroit Zoological Society commissioned Boston landscape architect Arthur Shurtleff to draw the plans for the park. Shurtleff did so according to the practices of landscape designer Carl Hagenback of Hamburg, Germany, who promoted the construction of zoo exhibits without bars. Rather than being caged, the animals roamed freely in outdoor habitats bounded by moats and “rocks” made of reinforced concrete. Carl’s son Heinrich came here to supervise and build the exhibits. The Detroit Zoological Park is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

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under a mile from where William Gabby lived in the 1760s

what this marker records spans 1777 to 1789, overlapping William Gabby's years here

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Marker data: Michigan History Center
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