Let’s remember when Ivan the Gorilla was moved to a cage inside the B&I store, on this day in 1967 (March 4)
For 27 years, Ivan the Gorilla was a fixture at the B&I Circus Store in Tacoma. For much of his life, he was the most famous Tacoman (no disrespect to Ahmad Rashad).
HistoryLink says:
On March 4, 1967, the gorilla Ivan (1962–2012) moves into a newly constructed cage at the B&I Circus Store in the Lakewood area of Pierce County south of Tacoma. Ivan was captured in Africa and brought to Tacoma in 1964. Upon his arrival, Ivan was put into the care of B&I pet shop manager Ruben Johnston (1923–1998) and his family. Ivan has outgrown his human home and experts advise that his needs would be better served in a cage. The new $60,000 cage at the B&I features amenities including a kitchen, a television, and a swinging bar. Ivan will live caged at the B&I store for the next 27 years. After animal-rights groups campaign for a move, in October 1994 he will be sent to Zoo Atlanta in Georgia, where he will live the final 18 years of his life in a more natural habitat.
How he got to Tacoma is heartbreaking:
The western lowland silverback gorilla affectionately known as Ivan was born in 1962 in the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville), which would later become the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In 1964 Ivan and another young gorilla — a female who would be named Burma — were captured by poachers. Earl Irwin arranged to purchase the two and had them brought to the B&I. Burma arrived first, the two gorillas having been transported separately, but she soon died of internal complications. When 2-year-old Ivan, who had been lost in transit for eight weeks, finally arrived in Tacoma in August 1964, he was weak and malnourished, weighing only 9 pounds. His chance for survival was slim. Ruben Johnston, manager of the pet shop at the B&I, his wife Lois Johnston (1923–1985), and their sons Larry and Danny raised the gorilla toddler in their modest home at 4601 S 72nd Street in the Manitou neighborhood of South Tacoma. Ivan thrived on love, attention, and constant companionship. Lois Johnston would often startle local residents when she took Ivan — still in diapers — with her while shopping for groceries or waiting at the doctor’s office.
There was even a children’s book written about him (whose cover I posted at the top).
For further reading:
