It was proposed in the setting up of ZSL that there would be a museum for zoological specimens, and items began being collected c.1827 including a collection of Sumatran specimens donated by Lady Sophia Raffles, widow of ZSL founder Sir Stamford Raffles. The museum was housed firstly within our office building at 33 Bruton Street in central London, and charged entry for people to visit. Many specimens were donated by fellows, John Gould donated his collection of Himalayan birds in 1831 to the museum, for example. The museum proved very popular, and grew at such a rate that it was one of the reasons for moving office to Leicester square. It was decided that the Society either needed to purchase a dedicated building for it - or to disperse the collection. ZSL Council chose the latter, and by 1855 the collection had been dispersed to various other collections including the British Museum (Natural History) and Norwich Museum.
Zoological Society of LondonLetter regarding notes on various lizards and a West African Echis
Papers regarding the authority of the council of the Zoological Society of London, including the legal opinion on the right of Council to grant pensions to staff and office; information regarding the illegality of Council's submitting its acts performed by virtue of the powers so conferred on them for confirmation or reversal by a General Meeting of the Fellows; Council's authority to appoint staff without reference to the Fellows; original authority for paying the Secretary; legal opinion regarding Dr Sclater's pension; authority to the Society to dispose of property and a codicil to Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell's will
Correspondence between Sir Arthur Landsborough Thomson and L Harrison Matthews regarding Council Meetings, a proposed educational exhibit, a museum of the Zoological Society of London, the Scientific Fellowship, and the Department of Zoology in Cambridge
Correspondence between W H T Tams of the British Museum (Natural History) and the Zoological Society of London regarding the biography of Dr C Davies Sherborn
Letter from the Secretary of the United Services Museum, accompanying two specimens of birds killed in Mexico and of a Scoter killed at Southampton. The letter asks the Zoological Society of London to inspect and return them
Correspondence between Pat Maxwell and George Soper Cansdale regarding sending dead snakes to the Royal Albert Memorial Museum at Exeter
Letters from Phineas Taylor Barnum to Philip Lutley Sclater regarding the purchase and transfer of Alice the elephant. Also a letter regarding the purchase of specimens for Barnum's Zoological Museum
Correspondence between the British Museum (Natural History) and Sheffield Airey Neave regarding delegates to the Conference on Nature Preservation in Post-War Reconstruction, and a meeting of the Council
Letter from St J Bolkay regarding Joan Procter leaving the British Museum