North Carolina Zoo - History

History

In 1967, the North Carolina legislature created the NC Zoological Garden Study Commission to examine the feasibility of a state zoo. The nine-member commission found that a zoo was both feasible and desirable. The next year, the North Carolina Zoological Society was formed with the goal of raising funds and public support for the zoo project. The same year, the legislature created the NC Zoological Authority to oversee the project. The site in Randolph County was selected from 6 sites after a 2-year search by the zoo commission, led by State Representative Archie McMillan of Wake County. After the selection of the site, its 1,371 acres (5.55 km2) were donated to the state. A $2 million dollar bond was passed and Governor Robert W. Scott dedicated the site in spring 1972. Construction of the North Carolina Zoo began in 1974 with the official opening date of August 13, 1976. The first animals, two Galapagos Tortoises arrived in 1973 and an interim zoo was opened in 1974. In 1978, Ham the Chimp, the first hominid in outer space, was moved to the zoo from the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. He lived there until his death in 1983 from a heart attack. After construction delays and difficulty securing private funding, an additional $7 million were given by the General Assembly, and the first permanent exhibit opened in 1979.

The zoo has continued to expand ever since. Throughout the 1980s, the exhibits of the Africa region opened and in 1984 the zoo received accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). In 1993, the first of the North America exhibits was completed, showcasing the animals and habitats of the Sonora Desert. The final North America exhibit opened in 1996.

Following the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, the zoo spearheaded efforts to rebuild and maintain the Kabul Zoo. Beginning in 2002, the Zoo helped raise funds, organize animal purchases, and provide expertise in animal care, exhibit reconstruction and renovation, staff training, and business strategy. In 2005 the NC Zoo employed a full-time staff member to live for a year in Kabul to assist with the training and retention of staff. Following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the NC Zoo once again took the lead in the rebuilding efforts at the Baghdad Zoo. The zoo's exhibits have been replaced and the staff now coordinates with the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine in a program set up by the zoo.

A temporary Australian exhibit opened in 2004 and featured the largest collection of Australian plants on the East Coast until 2006. The North Carolina Zoo is the nation’s first state-supported zoo and remains one of only two state zoos (the other state being Minnesota). In November 2008, the zoo announced that in the first 10 months of 2008, its operating revenue had increased 18% from its intake the previous year.