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![Black and white photo of a scene from opening day at Steinhart Aquarium on September 29, 1923](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/aq_1200x960_steinhart-aquarium-exterior-opening-day-bw_230929.jpg?itok=fIpMk0sr&c=0ce3dba3bd1bce0b21b8c80ab3367f22)
Photo: A scene from opening day outside the aquarium.
The 1920s: A splashy debut
On September 29, 1923, the brand-new Steinhart Aquarium opened to the public in Golden Gate Park. In 1928, Curator Alvin Seale pioneered the use of brine shrimp as aquarium fish food.
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![Black and white photo from the 1930s of the sailing ship Zaca, used on Academy expeditions](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/aq_2412x1752_bw-photo-zaca-ship-1932-galapagos-expedition-n9314.jpg?itok=WEMWGj-o&c=ae69ad7bbe53210376ad2ef8c711c387)
Photo: The ship Zaca, en route to the Galápagos Islands.
The 1930s: Epic expeditions
Steinhart staff sailed to the Galápagos to bring back scientific knowledge and animals to display. In 1938, an Australian lungfish, Methuselah, also arrived by sea. She is currently the oldest living aquarium fish on Earth.
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![Black and white photo from the 1940s of a woman in uniform feeding fish to a sea lion at the Academy](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/aq_2726x3367_1940s-bw-female-cadet-feeding-seal-n19005_edit.jpg?itok=FjxJ_uyQ&c=75fa8b4a09e89d3af1c19e855263705e)
Photo: Marine mammals, like Cissy the seal, lived at Steinhart until the 2000s.
The 1940s: All hands on deck
During World War II, staff were called on to serve overseas, including to help set up fisheries for soldiers in the Pacific. In 1947, a bit of postwar glamour: “The Lady from Shanghai,” starring Rita Hayworth, was filmed at Steinhart.
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![Black and white photo from the 1950s of Steinhart Aquarium Superintendent Earl Herald hosting Science in Action TV show](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/aq_3683x2789_science-in-action-1950s-tv-show-filming-steinhart-n4368.jpg?itok=j-HZwT5P&c=862cda551595f99199d56a06184be357)
Photo: Steinhart Superintendent Earl Herald hosting “Science in Action.”
The 1950s: Academy on air
From 1952 to 1966, a weekly live television program, “Science in Action," aired on local San Francisco stations and was syndicated nationwide. In 1958, San Francisco voters approved Proposition B to rebuild the aquarium.
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![Detail of colorful fish mosaic at Steinhart Aquarium by artist Guillermo Granizo](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/assets/images/exhibits/aq_2686x2686_steinhart-granizo-mosaic-detail_mg_0121-2_nr_cas.jpg?itok=jWy_5Xyb&c=d9061fce4331095b0476f118b330c336)
Photo: Fanciful fish populate one of Granizo’s mosaics.
The 1960s: Steinhart art
When Steinhart was renovated in the early 1960s, mosaic artist Guillermo Wagner Granizo decorated the hallways with dazzling tilework. In 1967, Butterball the manatee began his 17-year tenure at the aquarium.
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![The fish roundabout exhibit at Steinhart Aquarium with free-swimming open-ocean fish](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/aq_3401x2296_steinhart-fish-roundabout-1970s_400hx2_0007.jpg?itok=rgBwG_NG&c=d793366f195736ec3a4f88ca8a605aba)
Photo: Striped bass, yellowtail, and mackerel swim in the 360° habitat.
The 1970s: Circle of life
The fan favorite Fish Roundabout opened in May 1977. This ring-shaped aquarium housed pelagic species unaccustomed to encountering walls. In 1975, Steinhart was the first facility to display bioluminescent flashlight fishes.
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![Sandy the great white shark swims with former Steinhart Aquarium director John McCosker in 1980.](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/aq_4816x3211-mccosker-diving-with-sandy-great-white-shark-steinhart_jm139_edit.jpg?itok=YxtZXijr&c=67f662e60b5bf460e1a904927d4025bd)
Photo: Former aquarium director Dr. John McCosker swims with Sandy.
The 1980s: Totally jaw-some
Over a few days in 1980, 40,000 guests packed the aquarium to see Sandy, the first great white shark to be successfully displayed and released. In 1983, the Penguin Experience opened, Steinhart’s first major bird exhibition.
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![Steinhart biologist Jorge Gomezjurado holds a jar with captive-bred seahorses.](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/aq_2048x3072_biologist-holding-seahorse-in-beaker_400ex17_0005_edit.jpg?itok=TttxGmwr&c=c558247df1abb348949008dbe4ca9ff5)
Photo: Biologist Jorge Gomezjurado displays some Steinhart-bred seahorses.
The 1990s: An evolving focus
Steinhart developed breeding programs for penguins, salmon, seahorses, and other endangered species. In 1995, our dolphins were transferred to another facility due to growing concern around marine mammals in aquariums.
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![Cutaway view of the Academy's dramatic roofline with glass-enclosed indoor rainforest and undulating Living Roof](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/uploads/images/cas22-155-layers-small.jpg?itok=uWFni_ji&c=83647c008a3c292e2b307206eae74aec)
Photo: A cutaway view of the glass-enclosed rainforest and Living Roof.
The 2000s: A new Academy
After suffering damage in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, the Steinhart was torn down in 2004 to make way for the new Academy, which opened in September 2008. A month prior, Claude, our white alligator, arrived from Florida.
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![Steinhart director Bart Shephard scuba diving with the subCAS device to bring back live fish from the deep ocean.](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/hfr_2400x1560_bart-with-subcas-with-fish-copyright-luiz-rocha_lar4732.jpeg?itok=e0X_owoR&c=58ce83794771cd25ab3d7b537d485875)
Photo: Aquarium director Bart Shepherd collects reef fish; © Luiz Rocha.
The 2010s: Going deeper
Steinhart divers began using advanced techniques to explore rarely seen deep coral reefs and invented a device to safely bring fish back up to the surface. In 2018, the Academy was the first US facility to spawn corals.
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![Steinhart Biologists Tim Wong and Holly Rosenblum with Pogo and Ozzie our African penguin chicks.](https://calendar.calacademy.org/sites/default/files/styles/manual_crop_square_900px/public/penguins_3562x2375_tim-and-holly-with-pogo-and-ozzie_230112.jpg?itok=CN69IjMu&c=dbe2eac9376064802beb5e2317ceffa0)
Photo: Biologists Tim Wong and Holly Rosenblum with Pogo and Ozzie.
The 2020s: Hatching hope
COVID-19 closed the museum for 11 months, but Steinhart’s dedicated biologists showed up every day for our 60,000 animals. In 2022 and 2023, four new penguin chicks hatched at the Academy—the first since 2018.