One of the world’s most celebrated zoos began with an offhand remark from a San Diego doctor driving past a caged lion more than a century ago. Today, that same institution still sits just minutes from downtown, within easy reach of guests who choose The Westgate Hotel as their vacation homebase.
On September 16, 1916, a San Diego physician named Dr. Harry Wegeforth was driving back from surgery with his brother when he heard a lion roar from somewhere near Balboa Park. That single moment, half joke and half impulse, gave rise to one of the most celebrated zoos in the world, and it is still just minutes from The Westgate Hotel today.
A Doctor, a Drive, and a Lion’s Roar
The lion Wegeforth heard that afternoon was named Rex, one of several animals left behind in cages after the 1915 to 1916 Panama-California Exposition closed in Balboa Park. No one had decided what to do with them. Wegeforth turned to his brother Paul and said, “Wouldn’t it be splendid if San Diego had a zoo! You know, I think I’ll start one.”
It was not an idle remark. Within weeks, Wegeforth had gathered a small group of fellow citizens, including a doctor, a naturalist, and his own brother, and formed the San Diego Zoological Society. For a time, San Diego’s newspapers referred to the venture as “Wegeforth’s Folly.” History would prove them wrong.
From Exposition Leftovers to a World-Class Institution
The earliest San Diego Zoo was little more than an unfenced row of cages along a Balboa Park pathway, funded by donations, leftover food from local restaurants, and animals brought back by sailors returning from long voyages. One of the zoo’s first large residents was a Kodiak brown bear that had outgrown its welcome as a ship’s pet. Progress was slow and often improvised, but Wegeforth’s determination never wavered, and the zoo he built from a handful of abandoned exposition animals grew into a globally recognized center for wildlife conservation.
Balboa Park Today
More than a century later, San Diego Zoo remains one of the crown jewels of Balboa Park, alongside the park’s museums, gardens, and the historic architecture left over from that same 1915 exposition that started it all. It is an easy destination for guests who want to spend a day exploring beyond downtown.
Return to Refined Comfort at The Westgate
The San Diego Zoo sits just minutes from The Westgate Hotel, making it a natural stop for a morning or afternoon of exploring Balboa Park. When the day winds down, return to the Gaslamp Quarter and let The Westgate’s own old-world elegance take over. Settle in at Bonne Vie Brasserie and Bar for dinner, or head up to AquaVie’s rooftop pool to relax under the San Diego sky. What began with one lion’s roar in 1916 is now part of a city full of moments worth returning downtown to savor.