The aquarium and the conservatory under construction
Photo from the Burton Historical Collection.
The interior of the aquarium in 1958, with the modernized tanks.
Photo from the Walter P. Reuther Library
An aquarium employee gives a lake sturgeon a scrubdown sometime around 1920.
Photo from the Walter P. Reuther Library
Belle Isle employees hoist a giant turtle out of its tank. This is likely Big Pete, which was sold during the Depression for meat because the aquarium could no longer afford to take care of him
Photo from the Walter P. Reuther Library
The aquarium around 1958
Photo from the Walter P. Reuther Library
The entrance to the aquarium
Photo from the Detroit Free Press archives
The Belle Isle Aquarium in 1955
Photo from the Detroit Free Press archives
The Belle Isle Aquarium in 1979.
Photo from the Detroit Free Press archives
This incredible piece above the main entrance features the city seal
Photo from the Detroit Free Press archives
Piranha hang out in 1972
Photo from the Detroit Free Press archives
The aquarium in 1979
Photo from the Detroit Free Press archives
The aquarium's attendance struggled in the 1970s as Detroit's population shrank.
