South Bend's first zoo was a modest duck pond in Leeper Park in the spring of 1902, originally called the South Bend Zoo. In 1912, the location was changed when a herd of deer was moved to Potawatomi Park. The new zoo was based out of a house on Wall Street which had been used by the Anti-Tuberculosis League to house TB patients.For Potawatomi Zoo and beyond, use our South Bend trip planner to get the most from your South Bend vacation.
The current facility and name were formalized as Potawatomi Zoo in 1921 when a single deer was donated by Albert Russell Erskine, then president of the Studebaker Corporation.
At the end of the Great Depression in 1940, the Works Progress Administration constructed the zoo's Cat House, its first permanent structure. The building still stands, and through renovations, now serves as home to Amur and snow leopards.
In 1971, the St. Joseph Zoological Society, now called Potawatomi Zoological Society, was formed, with Craig D. McCowan as its first director. In 1981, the zoo began charging admission, to provide an accurate attendance count as well as revenue.
In 2014, the Potawatomi Zoological Society and the City of South Bend entered into a partnership for the Society to run the Zoo with financial support from the City.
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Potawatomi Zoo reviews
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What a great smaller zoo. Have been trying to see as many zoos as we can. Great array of animals, the park is clean, not very crowded when we went, about 2 hours before it closed. Wish it was closer..... more
What a great smaller zoo. Have been trying to see as many zoos as we can. Great array of animals, the park is clean, not very crowded when we went, about 2 hours before it closed. Wish it was closer..... more »
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Nice smaller zoo, the kids really enjoyed the mix of animals and activities. Buy your train and carousel tickets in the gift shop.
Nice smaller zoo, the kids really enjoyed the mix of animals and activities. Buy your train and carousel tickets in the gift shop. more »
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Have always loved Potawatomi Zoo. Got there as soon as the zoo opened. Today was in the too cool range so some of the animals and birds were kept in, away from the outdoors and people. Would like to go back when warmer. They are also updating some of the exhibits for new animals. Highly recommend especially if you have children. Teach them the value of conservation.
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Yeah I'm very fond of zoos and this one in particular a lot of it has to do because it's close but they have a nice variety of animals everything looks like it's taken care of very well. it's clean. Take a bunch of kids had a lot of fun. They have a carousel and a train. They have a meat and amazing giraffe display the end of drafts are just beautiful We actually didn't see the whole zoo in one day because the kids were getting tired so we'll come back I went ahead and got a season pass
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