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ZSL Whipsnade Zoo, formerly known as Whipsnade Wild Animal Park, is a zoo and safari park located at Whipsnade, near Dunstable in Bedfordshire, England. It is one of two zoos (the other being ZSL London Zoo in Regent's Park, London) that are owned by the Zoological Society of London. A disastrous fire in Whipsnade's Administration block in 1962 destroyed most of the archives held at Whipsnade (except for the Whipsnade Daily Occurrences). The files listed here were the ones kept in the Offices at Regent's Park, and were therefore not lost in the fire.

Letters and papers relating to the position of Secretary at ZSL. In the past this position was responsible for the overall running of the Zoo(s), but in later years it has become an honorary position. The letters in particular show a breadth of correspondence between the society and people and organisations around the world.

Letters and papers relating to the position of President at Zoological Society of London

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.

Files concerning ZSL and film and television. Includes letters from Huxley about a proposed cinema; correspondence about programmes such as "Zoo Time" with Desmond Morris; letters between Zuckerman and Bernstein and Forman of Granada TV

Council is the governing body of the Zoological Society of London. It is made up of three elected Officers - the President, Secretary and Treasurer – and twelve elected members. Council members are the Trustees

Records relating to the proposed closure of London and Whipsnade Zoos in the 1990s

London Zoo opened in April 1828 as the Gardens of the Zoological Society of London, in the first instance only to fellows of the society. It opened to the general public in 1847, in an effort to boost funds for the Zoo.

Records relating to veterinary and pathology at ZSL

The Zoological Club, connected with ZSL, was founded in 1866 by HW Bates, WH Flower, TH Huxley, PL Sclater, and others. The Club met to dine at various restaurants, including the Cafe Royal, before basing itself at London Zoo from 1914.