BALTIMORE, MD – As it celebrates its 150th anniversary, Maryland Zoo has released This is Your Zoo, a book of non-fiction detailing the institution’s colorful history – from a rag-tag start as a menagerie of abandoned animals into a world-leading animal care and conservation institution.
Written and meticulously researched by the Zoo’s Registrar, Ian Shelley, with a forward by President and CEO, Kirby Fowler, This is Your Zoo is a tale about the resiliency of people and animals, and the generations of Marylanders who never stopped rallying behind their beloved zoo.
The book title refers to a weekly tv show of the same name featuring the Zoo that aired on Baltimore television in the 1950’s.
“The Maryland Zoo turned 150 years old earlier this year and the facility we have now bears almost no resemblance to what was here in 1876,” Shelley said. “The Zoo has evolved and grown in ways that would have been unimaginable back then.”
“That we have been able to do so – to survive in the face of extreme hardship and ultimately thrive and accomplish great things – is a testimony to the support the Zoo has received from the surrounding communities over the years. When Marylanders walk through the front gates, I really want them to reflect upon that and realize that this is very much their Zoo.”
“Through name changes and near bankruptcy, to safaris around the globe and neighborhoods across Maryland, Ian captures the Zoo’s twists and turns over 150 years with great scholarship and a dry sense of humor,” Fowler said. “The book pulls you in using vignettes that make you feel like you were there with our keepers.”
This is Your Zoo is currently available at the gift shop and here on our website’s shop. Look for it in area bookshops early this fall.
*Please note: International orders, contact membership@marylandzoo.org instead of purchasing through our website.
What They’re Saying About This is Your Zoo
“Ian Shelley’s story of Maryland Zoo’s 150-year evolution from menagerie to world-leading conservation and education organization is full, factual, fun, and fascinating. This place is an institutional anchor in the Baltimore community, always engaging guests, helping lead the broader zoological community, and inspiring empathy and action for animals and nature.”
-Dan Ashe, President & CEO, Association of Zoos & Aquariums
“In This is Your Zoo, Ian Shelley shares stories of animals beloved by generations of Baltimoreans, informs us of how zookeeping has changed over 150 years, and gives us a peek at the human characters behind it all. This is a book about the Zoo, for sure, but it’s also about Baltimore over the last century and a half. It’s a fantastic avenue into understanding our city and our history.”
-Johns Hopkins, Executive Director, Baltimore Heritage
“This history of a 150-year-old zoo is a delightful sensory overload of animals, people, architecture, and expeditions, which many people will find startling. It will undoubtedly revive fond memories for generations of Maryland Zoo visitors. It’s a masterful piece of scholarship and storytelling from a life-long zoo enthusiast who is also a professional.”
-Josef Lindholm, Zoo Historian
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