Editing London Zoo (section)

===1828–1938===
[[File:George Francis Joseph - Sir Thomas Stamford Bingley Raffles.jpg|thumb|''[[Portrait of Stamford Raffles]]'' by [[George Francis Joseph]], 1817. Raffles was a driving force behind the creation of the zoo before his death in 1826]]
[[File:Gardens of the Zoological Society Regent's Park 1828 - Project Gutenberg eText 11389.png|thumb|right|Bird's eye view drawing of the gardens of the Zoological Society, circa 1828]]
[[File:View of the Zoological Gardens1835.jpg|right|thumb|1835 painting of the camel house.]]
The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) was established by [[Stamford Raffles|Sir Stamford Raffles]] and [[Humphry Davy|Sir Humphry Davy]] in 1826,<ref name="ZSL-history" /> who obtained the land for the zoo and saw the plans before Raffles died of [[apoplexy]] (a [[stroke]]) later that year on 5 July, his birthday.<ref name="goodzoos" /> After his death, [[Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 3rd Marquess of Lansdowne]] took over the project and supervised the building of the first animal houses.<ref name="goodzoos" /> The zoo opened in April 1828 to fellows of the Society,<ref name="ZSL-history" /> providing access to species such as [[Arabian oryx]], [[greater kudu]]s, [[orangutan]] and the now extinct [[quagga]] and [[thylacine]].<ref name="goodzoos" /> The Society was granted a [[royal charter]] in 1829 by [[George IV of the United Kingdom|King George IV]], and in 1847 the zoo opened to the public to aid funding.<ref name="ZSL-history" /><ref name="placestogo">{{cite web | url = http://www.places-to-go.org.uk/London_Zoo.htm | title = London Zoo | publisher = Places to Go | access-date =11 March 2008}}</ref>

It was believed that [[tropics|tropical]] animals could not survive outside in London's cold weather, so they were all kept indoors until 1902, when [[Peter Chalmers Mitchell]] was appointed secretary of the Society.<ref name="goodzoos" /> He set about a major reorganisation of the buildings and enclosures of the zoo, bringing many of the animals out into the open, where many thrived. This was an idea inspired by [[Zoological Garden of Hamburg|Hamburg Zoo]], and led to newer designs for many of the buildings.<ref name="goodzoos" /> Mitchell also envisaged a new {{convert|600|acre|adj=on}} park to the north of London, and in 1926 Hall Farm, near to [[Whipsnade|Whipsnade village]], was bought. In 1931, Whipsnade Wild Animal Park, the world's first open zoological park, opened.<ref name="ZSL-history" /> The first woman to be a curator at London Zoo was [[Evelyn Cheesman]], in 1920.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Shaw|first1=Heather|title=Amazing Women from ZSL's History|url=http://www.zsl.org/blogs/zsl-london-zoo/amazing-women-from-zsls-history|website=ZSL London Zoo|date=2 March 2015}}</ref>