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Old Birmingham/Dudley Zoo Photographs

1

1963ADRIAN

proper brummie kid
I am in the middle of a very large project and would like help if you have any old photographs of either Birmingham or Duldey zoo I would like to see them
Any help would be brilliant thank you
 
Adrian

I don't know if these would be any good to you, one is a very early photo of the main gates at Dudley Zoo the other two look to be late 50's early 60's and are of one of the Elephants giving rides and the other is of the Lion's enclosure.

Phil

DudleyZooMainGate.jpg
DudleyZooLionEnclosure.jpg


DudleyZooElephant.jpg
 
Many thanks for these, they show early zoo days at Dudley thy are great
I hope threr are more of this type of photographs out there as they really open your eyes as to what the zoo's used to be like.
 
1963ADRIAN said:
I am in the middle of a very large project and would like help if you have any old photographs of either Birmingham or Duldey zoo I would like to see them
Any help would be brilliant thank you
Click to expand...
This sounds exciting - what is the large project you are working on?
Polly :)
 
The projects I ma doing at the moment are to find out as much information on the species
kept at our local zoo's from the day that they opened.
i'm also trying to get an image of how the zoo's used to look that were the photographs come in.
At the moment I have a very large list of species held at Dudley Zoo / West Midlands Safari Park / Twycross Zoo /
Hagley Falconary Centre & Birmingham Nature Centre.
At the moment I know there are still lots of species missing from these list's and I'm short of information on the
buildings and enclosures that the animals used to be kept in.
Photographs would be a great help to me as they show how the zoo's used to look
so any help would be great
 
1963ADRIAN said:
I am in the middle of a very large project and would like help if you have any old photographs of either Birmingham or Duldey zoo I would like to see them
Any help would be brilliant thank you
Click to expand...
What do you call old? What years are you interested in?
Polly
 
Possibly not quite what you're looking for, but here's one of myself and my brother at Dudley Zoo in 1948.

Maurice :cool:
 
Hi 1963adrian
yes i would imagine they do change from year to year
i would be very surprized if the old elephant and the camel that gave us a
ride just up behind the front gates is still there
and that was in the fortys and auntie maud took us to the old dudleyu zoo
and we travelled from aston cross to spring hill and then what was the old midland bus that came down from the city through spring hill and up to dudley zoo
which was then the number was the b 87 bus passing the old red cow ,pub ;
ah ; does anybody remember that pub ,-- you pub crawlers
best wishes astonian ;;;;;;
 
Sospiri thats great to see a picture from a few years ago and then to have a thumbnail of you in the corner that
made the photograph much more interesting thank you.
Astonian unfortunatly both the camel and elephants are no longrer at the zoo, the last 2 elephants moved to a zoo in France
Port St Pere in 2003 this was due to Dudley feeling that there enclosure was to small for them and the zoo made it policy to
no longer keep elephants as it doesn't have the ground or finances to keep them in a enviroment that would do them justice.
Flossie was born 1967 and flora was born 1986 unfortunatly Flossie died in 2004 but good old flora is still alive today and doing fine
They also no longer keep camels in the zoo unsure of the reason.

Please keep the information coming as every little bit helps
many thanks
Wendy thats an old photograph but very interesting many thanks
 
Lencops many thanks for the link will try to use the information I can gain from this as well
Aiden great photographs I love recieving photographs that relate to the people who them to me
that's a great photograph with the bears
many thanks again
please keep the information coming every bit helps
 
These photos wers taken in the early 80's - don't know if they are what you are looking for. I don't think my camera was that brilliant then but they are not too bad.
Polly :)
 
....and the last two. I think I have some more photos taken in the 90's. I will have a look for them.
Polly :)
 
hi adrian..ive got one or two taken in the 50s but from memory they are more family pics..not sure how much of the zoo they show...if you would like me to turf them out and have a look just let me know..

lyn
 
I would like to see those as any information I can take from them would help
me alot as I have said every little bit of information no matter how small
will help me in alot of ways
many thanks
 
Hi

I am not sure if what I have will be any good yet but my dad took us to Dudley Zoo I think on the film it say's 1967 I am just about to have them transferred to DVD as it is the old type of film that you need a projector for it will take approx 3 weeks to be done so if I can get any good images from them I can let you know if you are still interested when I get them. I am due to take them at the end of the week.

Kind regards Paula
 
That would be absolutly brilliant I would love to see some images from around that time
many thanks for getting in touch
 
Hi Adrian,

No problem once I have them I will get in touch and let you know I am sure it dated 1967.

Kind regards Paula
 
HI ADRIAN ;
Many thanks for your reply in letting me know about the annimals i would imagine it was for the better of the two to be moved to another zoo of comfort where they did not have to work hardfor there keep, they was constanly on the go ,i remember a couple years after they introduced donkeys in side the gates for kids and the ele;s had gone
i passed there last week late on the evening and i wondered whether or not had they expanded there site
or even inproved the standarda round the zoo, would you know ?.
have a nice day everybody incidently may i take this opportunetity to say the resovoir as been completly demolished and long gone the one oppersite the aston resovoir and it was nice to see the aston villa pub
holbun hill surrounding by the union jack all around the pub on st georges day and still flying today
in a true astonian tradional style [ great ]
have a nice day every body best wishes Astonian ;;;;
 
Astonian - the zoo is starting to get to look alot better these days I visit about every 2 weeks
as I care for my mother and have one day off every 2 weeks,
The Old Ape House as just been refurbished at the back (where the public used to walk through)
and made into 2 pretty large indoor playing area's for the Orangutans they have.
The Chimpanzees have there own area now it's down by the old Minature Railway (no longer running)
The Elephant House is now home to the Birds of prey that do the displays in the courtyard.
The elephant paddock now homes a walk through for Red necked Wallaby's
There are plenty of things going on in the zoo to bring it up to a very high standard but it
will take a little time.
The thing that holds the zoo back unfortuantly are the Tecton Buildings they are badly damaged and
without a massive influx of cash I can't see them ever improving this is down to the Local Council
and English Heritage to sort out.
There are plans afoot to restart the chairlift and to have a car park between both the Zoo and the Black
Country Museum I think this will be a benefit to both attractions
 
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