Como Park, Zoo, and Conservatory
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Como Park Zoo and Marjorie McNeely Conservatory | |
 The Marjorie McNeely Conservatory at Como Park
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| Date opened | 1873 (park), 1897 (zoo), 1915 (conservatory) |
| Location | Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA |
| Coordinates | |
| Accreditations/ Memberships |
AZA |
| Website | |
The Como Park Zoo and Marjorie McNeely Conservatory (or just Como Zoo and Conservatory) are located in Como Park at 1225 Estabrook Drive, Saint Paul, Minnesota. The park, zoo and conservatory are owned by the City of Saint Paul and are a division of Saint Paul Parks and Recreation. The attractions located there include the zoo, the conservatory, an amusement park, a carousel, Lake Como, a golf course, a pool and more. The park receives more than 2.5 million visitors annually. Como Park is a free park and while no admission fee is charged for the zoo or conservatory, voluntary donations of $2 per adult and $1 child are suggested.
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[edit] Como Park
In 1873 the City of Saint Paul acquired 300 acres (1.2 km²) of land around Como Lake that would become a public park. Today the 384-acre (1.6 km²) park includes:
- 2.3 miles (3.7 km) of paved trails
- Athletic fields
- Como Golf Course - 18 hole, 70 par
- Como Lake
- 1.67 mile paved path around the lake
- Fishing Pier
- Lakeside Pavilion - includes Black Bear Crossings restaurant
- Paddleboat rentals
- Como Pool
- Como Town amusement park
- Picnic shelters
- Putt'er There Mini Golf
[edit] Art/Sculptures/Historic Structures in Como Park
- Bridge No. L-5853 - Abandoned pedestrian bridge over former street car tracks, built in 1904 and engineered by William S. Hewitt. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. It is significant for being one of the oldest examples of a reinforced concrete bridge.
- Bridge No. 92247 - Lexington Avenue Bridge - Also built in 1904 and engineered by William S. Hewitt, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. It's significant for being one of the oldest examples of a reinforced concrete bridge and because it is wider than it is long.
- Cafesjian's Carousel
- Comfort Station - Prairie style restrooms located in the West Picnic Grounds that were completed in 1917 and restored in 1998.
- Frog Pond - Completed in 1910, the overlook has a pergola that was donated in 1929. The granite frog, from which the pond gets its name, is from 1923.
- Gates Ajar - Originally installed in 1894. Being refurbished in 2007.
- Global Harmony Labyrinth - Dedicated in 2005, it celebrates the Sister City relationship between Saint Paul and Nagasaki, Japan. (read about the construction of the labyrinth)
- Granite Frog - Located in the middle of Frog Pond directly south of the conservatory, last remaining component of the original Japanese garden.
- Hamms Memorial Waterfall
- Henrik Ibsen - Bust of Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, created by Norwegian-born artist Jacob Fjelde and given to the city in 1907 by a Norwegian fraternal organization. The bust was stolen in 1982 and replaced in the late 1990s. ("Oh, Henrik!" City Pages, October 21, 1998)
- Historic Street Car Station - A station for the Twin City Rapid Transit Company and the Como-Harriet line.
- Joyce Kilmer Memorial Fireplace - The large stone fireplace was erected in 1936 in memory of poet Joyce Kilmer. Today the fireplace is in a state of disrepair.
- Lakeside Pavilion - The current building was constructed in 1992 as an exact replica of the original 1905 building.
- Lily Pond - Originally built in 1895 and known as the Aquarium, the pond featured exotic lily pads. While the lily pads returned to Como Park at the conservatory in 2005, the original pond has been dry and unused for some time.
- Mannheimer Memorial - Designed in 1905-1906 by Cass Gilbert, who also designed the Minnesota State Capital building.
- Points of Compass - A life-size sundial designed and constructed by Superintendent of Parks George Nason in the 1930s.
- Schiller Statue - Bronze figure of Johann von Schiller with a granite base by artist Ignatium Taschner, dedicated in 1907.
- Schiffman Fountain
- Submariner's Memorial - Dedicated in 1965 as a memorial to the lost crew of the USS Swordfish.
[edit] Saint Paul Winter Carnival at Como Park
In 1939 Lake Como hosted the Winter Carnival Ice Palace and the Winter Carnival Medallion has been hidden in Como Park seven times (1956, 1965, 1980, 1990, 1997, 2001 and 2003).
[edit] Como Zoo
The first zoo in Saint Paul was on Harriet Island when in 1897, the city of St. Paul received a gift of three deer. Additional animals followed, when more room was needed to house the animals they were moved to facilities at Como Park. Como Zoo continued to grow through donations of animals and money.
The art deco Zoological Building was designed in 1936 by Charles Bassford[1] as part of the federally funded Works Progress Administration. Other WPA structures were completed in the 1930s, including Monkey Island (now Seal Island), barn and bear grotto.
In the 1980s several new exhibits were added as part of a major renovation project, including the Large Cat exhibit (1980), Aquatic Animal Building and conversion of Monkey Island to Seal Island (1982), the Primate Facility (1985), the Land and Water Bird exhibit (1986) and the African Hoofed Stock Facility (1987).
[edit] Art at Como Zoo
- Don the Gorilla - Bronze and stone statue of a popular gorilla named Don donated by artist Betty Sievert in 1982. Located outside the primate house.
- Giraffes - Fiberglass giraffes created by Third Street Studios and donated in memory of Sandra Kay Bjick in 1994. Located near the giraffe exhibit.
- Polar Bears - Fiberglass polar bears created by Third Street Studios. Located near the polar bear exhibit.
- Sparky - Fiberglass sculpture of 'Sparky' the sea lion who performs entertaining shows at Como Zoo. Created by Third Street Studios in 1997 in celebration of the zoo's centennial. Located near the Sparky Amphitheater.
- Toby the Tortoise - Bronze sculpture of the popular tortoise named Toby. Create by the artist Tischler. Located in front of the Zoological building in the Como Park Zoo Donor Plaza.
[edit] Casey the Gorilla
On May 13, 1994 Casey the gorilla, 400 pounds, scaled the wall of his enclosure and wandered free around the zoo for 45 minutes. Visitors were ushered to safety as zoo staff shot Casey with a tranquilizer and returned him to his enclosure. This resulted in the zoo building a temporary slanted wall around the enclosure to keep this from happening again and the zoo is planning on building a new area for the gorillas making it safer and impossible to escape from. The zoo plans to open this new exhibit in 2012. Casey has since been moved to the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans.
[edit] Marjorie McNeely Conservatory
| Como Park Conservatory | |
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| U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
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| Location: | Como Park St. Paul, Minnesota |
| Built/Founded: | 1913 |
| Architect: | Frederick Nussbaumer |
| Added to NRHP: | November 19, 1974 |
| NRHP Reference#: | 74001033 |
The Marjorie McNeely Conservatory (0.5 acres) was first opened in 1915, and is open every day of the year. It includes the following gardens and galleries:
- Bonsai Gallery
- Enchanted Garden - a butterfly garden.
- Fern Room
- Japanese Garden - sansui style, mountain and water landscape, as a sign of friendship with Saint Paul's sister city of Nagasaki, Japan.
- North Garden - useful plants such as aloe, bamboo, bananas, cacao, coffee, figs, macadamia, mahogany, manila hemp, manioc, papaya, etc.
- Orchid House
- Palm Dome (64' high and 100' in diameter) - more than 150 palm species, as well as orchids and bromeliads.
- Sunken Garden - seasonal flower shows.
- Tropical Encounters - A new exhibit (opened fall 2006) featuring animals and plants from the tropics.
The conservatory was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
[edit] Art at the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory
- Crest of the Wave - Bronze sculpture created in 1925 by artist Harriet Frishmuth. Located in the Palm Dome.
- Play Days - Bronze sculpture by artist Harriet Frishmuth. Located in the Sunken Garden.
- St. Francis of Assisi - Sculpture of the revered saint, Francis of Assisi.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- http://www.comozooconservatory.org/
- Cafesjian's Carousel
- Como Woodland Restoration and Outdoor Classroom
- Como Park, Zoo, and Conservatory is at coordinates Coordinates:
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