New Deal Archeologies: The Old Los Angeles Zoo

The landscapes we walk through every day are laden with New Deal structures; it’s not uncommon to “discover” long forgotten New Deal sites hidden from plain sight. One of our friends in Los Angeles was walking through LA’s Griffith Park recently and discovered the ruins of the Old Los Angeles Zoo. The zoo was active from 1912 to 1965. County relief workers, hired through the WPA, fortified the site with new walls, murals and other projects in the 1930’s. Old LA Zoo Sign

We added the zoo immediately to our map, you can look at the page we’ve devoted to it here.  Hint: Click on the main photo, then hover your mouse over the photo. You should see an arrow that you can use to scroll through all of the zoo photos. We love getting submissions for the map. Send us yours!

Rachel Brahinsky is the Living New Deal's managing director and postdoctoral fellow.