The Toledo Zoo / The New Deal in Toledo

Side A: Now ranked among the country’s finest, the zoo began in 1900 with one large woodchuck in a box at Walbridge Park. After the organization of the Toledo Zoological Society, 1905-10, the zoo began its steady growth, particularly after 1923 under the leadership of Percy C. Jones. An ambitious federal construction program during the Great Depression of the 1930s provided several major structures.(See other side) Side B: Hard hit as any city by the Great Depression of the 1930s, Toledo benefited greatly from the federal “New Deal” programs. Construction of several zoo buildings was only one of the public works that transformed the city. Federal and local projects provided two high school stadiums, nine elementary schools, park shelter houses, highways, and an architectural landmark, the Toledo Public Library. (See other side)