Description

These American bison, also known as buffalo, were part of the Smithsonian's Department of Living Animals. The Department was started by chief taxidermist William T. Hornaday, who was a spokesman for the conservation movement and very concerned about the possible extinction of American bison. The bison formed part of a collection of wild North American animals in a small sort of zoo in the yard behind the Smithsonian Castle in the late 1880s and early 1890s, before the establishment of the National Zoo.

Date

1886-1889

Coverage

1860-1889

Source

Smithsonian Institution Archives. View original.