Cyrus Barnard "Cy" DeVry (1859–1934) was an American zookeeper. He was the first director of the

Lincoln Park Zoo Lincoln Park Zoo, also known as Lincoln Park Zoological Gardens, is a zoo in Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois. The zoo was founded in 1868, making it the fourth oldest zoo in North America. It is also one of a few free admission zoos in the Unit ...

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, holding this position from 1888 to 1919.

Career

DeVry was born in

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...

. He came to Chicago in part to succeed his uncle, Herman DeVry, who had overseen

Lincoln Park Lincoln Park is a park along Lake Michigan on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. Named after US President Abraham Lincoln, it is the city's largest public park and stretches for seven miles (11 km) from Grand Avenue (500 N), on the south, ...

until his death in 1888. When Cy DeVry took over the zoo in the park, it was a haphazard array of animal cages. Over the course of the 1890s he arranged for the construction of purpose-built structures such as an aviary, a monkey house, and a visitor's center including a

gift shop A gift shop or souvenir shop is a store primarily selling souvenirs, memorabilia, and other items relating to a particular topic or theme. The items sold often include coffee mugs, stuffed animals, toys, t-shirts, postcards, handmade collect ...

. DeVry was a colorful personality, known for his ever-present cigar and tiger-tooth

watch fob A pocket watch (or pocketwatch) is a watch that is made to be carried in a pocket, as opposed to a wristwatch, which is strapped to the wrist. They were the most common type of watch from their development in the 16th century until wristwatc ...

. Though popular with the public, his political independence and drinking habit made him enemies in Chicago politics. He was dismissed from his position in 1900, but was rehired in 1901 after a political shakeup at the parks commission. Animal-handling methods of the time were crude and unsafe, and DeVry, who had been handling large animals from boyhood, was known as a hands-on zookeeper. He was seriously wounded on multiple occasions, most seriously in 1901 when Leo the lion bit off the end of his index finger. The wound healed poorly and DeVry was told that the hand might have to be amputated. Devastated, he attempted suicide by gunshot, but survived. In two respects DeVry was an innovative zookeeper. In the first place, he believed that captive animals required stimulation and enrichment, although his methods were peculiar by today's standards. For instance, he kept his monkeys entertained by placing a pig in their enclosure. Although the pig provided plenty of diversion to the monkeys, the arrangement drew the ire of the Illinois Humane Society. DeVry was also an early example of a zoological ambassador. He gave frequent interviews, conducted animal publicity stunts, and innovated public relations techniques that would later be used by the likes of

Jim Fowler James Mark Fowler (April 9, 1930 – May 8, 2019) was an American professional zoologist and host of the acclaimed wildlife documentary television show Mutual of Omaha's ''Wild Kingdom''. Early years Born in Albany, Georgia, Fowler spent h ...

and Joan Embery. For instance, he presented a bear cub during the pre-game at what became Wrigley Field, at the first home game of the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

. In 1919 DeVry was fired after engaging in an altercation with a zoo visitor who had been pestering some young women. A petition protesting his dismissal attracted 50,000 signatures, but park commissioners determined that DeVry's presence was inimical to discipline. After leaving the Lincoln Park Zoo, DeVry accepted a position at the East Los Angeles

menagerie A menagerie is a collection of captive animals, frequently exotic, kept for display; or the place where such a collection is kept, a precursor to the modern Zoo, zoological garden. The term was first used in 17th-century France, in reference to ...

William Selig William Nicholas Selig (March 14, 1864 – July 15, 1948) was a pioneer of the American motion picture industry. In 1896 he created one of the first film production companies, Selig Polyscope Company of Chicago. Selig produced a string of c ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:DeVry, Cy 1859 births 1934 deaths American amputees American zoologists People from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Scientists with disabilities