Recalling nostalgic memories: Assiniboine Park offers zoo history tour

A red panda is shown on Aug. 30, 2025. (Zach Kitchen/CTV News Winnipeg)

Visitors to the Assiniboine Park’s zoo got a glimpse into its storied past on Saturday, as a new history tour explored over 100 years of animal care, conservation and community memories.

“We definitely see the animals. There is the interactive element that way, but the zoo has been so important to so many people for such a long time,” Barret Miller, manager of education and programming of the Assiniboine Park Conservancy, explained of the rationale.

“There’s interest and there’s memories. This tour is about explaining why some of those memories took place, and how they took place; where the zoo has come from, and where we might be going in the future.”

Miller pointed out some of the milestones in the zoo’s history.

“Setting the bar for bear care has changed substantially since we opened over 100 years ago. But the Journey to Churchill exhibit is an example of just being the best we possibly can, for polar bears.

“Seeing Toucan Ridge building in 1970s; (there were) couple facelifts but it is still thriving and supporting good animal care and good visitor experience, I think that’s a neat one.”

He said the inspiration for the historical aspect came from his family.

“We had everybody, from three (years old) to almost 90, and the story just started flowing. We were touring the zoo, we were seeing the animals, we were doing what most zoo visitors do.

“But, I realized my own family is very nostalgic about different things. We all had different experience at different times in their lives … and if it was my family, I realized ‘well, that’s going to be everybody.’”

The last offering for the Zoo History Tour is on Monday, Sept. 1.