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4850 W Powell Rd, Powell, OH 43065

 

The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is a zoo located in Powell, Ohio. The zoo was founded in 1867 and has been open to the public since 1979. It is home to over 1,300 animals from over 250 different species.

The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium offers many events throughout the year including birthday parties, sleepovers with giraffes, animal encounters, concerts under the stars by some of today’s hottest country music artists like Brad Paisley or Toby Keith! The aquarium also has an IMAX theater that shows movies daily on topics such as sharks or underwater life!

The Columbus Zoo is home to more than 7,000 animals representing over 800 species and sees over 2.3 million visitors annually. The animal exhibits are divided into regions of the world, with the zoo currently operating eight such regions. In addition, the zoo owns an 18-hole golf course, known as the Safari Golf Club which encompasses 56.656 hectares (140 acres). The zoo also owns Zoombezi Bay which encompasses 9.187 hectares (22.70 acres). In total, the zoo owns 234 hectares (580 acres) of land, with 164.424 hectares (406.30 acres) dedicated to the zoo itself.

The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium has a history that spans over 100 years! The Columbus Zoological Company was created in 1905 and the first animals arrived at what is now known as the zoo on March 12 of 1910, although it wasn’t open to visitors until June 22 of that same year. The land for the zoo was purchased from William Haugh-owned farmland located between North High Street (US 40) and Cleveland Avenue with an additional strip along Alum Creek taking up 193 hectares (477 acres). 

There were only “seven chimpanzees, two grizzly bears, three leopards, one deer; birds included parrots, peafowls and pigeons” at the time. In 1912 after much-needed renovations totaling $60,000 ($411,164.45 in 2016), the zoo was open to visitors for re-admittance and by 1913 included a bear pit, an elephant house with a kangaroo court as well as monkey cages! The first director of the zoo was Harry H. Jones who served from 1912 until his death on Oct 31st, 1916 due to illness contracted while working at a World War I refugee camp.

Remember staying there for hours on end and not getting tired even once because everything is so interesting. You get up close with most animals by walking or riding through their habitats which are separated from visitors somehow (or at least that’s how it felt) but you can still really see them well without being too much inside their space. 

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Worthington, Ohio is blessed with some of the state’s most amazing, must-see landmarks. Here’s a list of some of our favorites:

  • Jeffers Mound
  • Peggy R. McConnell Arts Center of Worthington
  • Griswold Center
  • Orange Johnson House
  • Walnut Grove Cemetery
  • The Old Rectory
  • The Ohio Railway Museum
  • McConnell Arts Center
  • Columbus Zoo and Aquarium 

All of these wonderful landmarks are located just a short distance from our central location at 65 East Wilson Bridge Road in Worthington! Stop by for a visit anytime!

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