In 1930, Chicago was descending into the throes of the Great Depression along with the rest of the country. Aside from the antics of the mayor, one other event caught the attention of the populace like no other. That event was the arrival of an orphaned gorilla from West Africa at the Lincoln Park Zoo. The animal had been acquired in Cameroon by a Presbyterian missionary and was sold to the Zoo for $3,500. His name was Bushman, and he was the first Lowland Gorilla to be displayed west of the Potomac.
The acquisition immediately proved to be beneficial to the Zoo, which had been established in 1868 from two swans donated by Central Park in New York City. The zoo went from being a cramped, urban zoo to being one of the top-flight institutions for gorilla breeding. Bushman immediately became a huge hit with the city. Not just that, but he became a star. He would appear in newsreels, in addition to catching the fancy of the Marine Corps and the nation's zoo directors. While he was on exhibit he would be known to throw things(usually his dung) from his cage at any nearby photographers. It was said that Bushman had a better throw than any pitcher on the Cubs or the White Sox.
The love that the city had for Bushman was so great that in June of 1950, he was thought to be dying, so 120,000 people came to see him in a single day. 4 months later, seemingly better, he broke out of his cage and traipsed about the kitchen and corridors for about 3 hours until he was scared back into his cage by a garter snake. Bushman finally did die on January 1, 1951, and mourners filed past his empty cage for several weeks. After his death, Bushman's body was preserved and sent to the Field Museum, where he continues to stand today as a remembrance of the most popular primate in Chicago's history.
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