Welcome to the Museum of Aquarium and Pet History

Welcome to The Museum of Aquarium & Pet History: the world’s most comprehensive collection of artifacts relating to aquarium and pet keeping. This museum includes a huge depository of over 3,000 items that were historically used to keep pets. These items would be antique aquariums, fish bowls and stands, bird cages, squirrel cages, dog, cat, bird, and fish foods and medications, pet advertising signs including neon and automation, pet product shipping wood crates, metal fish shipping cans, etc., etc. The museum also has a library with over 1,000 aquarium and pet books, 5,000 aquarium and pet magazines, and hundreds of original letters from pet companies, pet publishers, aquarium & pet hobbyists, pet stores, etc.

It took four decades to build this collection and it is currently being housed in six buildings. Building number 1 (display building) houses over 200 antique aquariums and fish bowls plus over 200 bird cages along with dog & cat food items, plus antique pet advertising signs and more. Currently we are online only and have monthly articles published on pet history by the best pet historians worldwide. We also have a YouTube channel with a new major release monthly plus new 5-minute weekly videos. We hope to have a building open to the public with rotating exhibits of our collection by 2027. To stay up to date, please subscribe to our YouTube channel and newsletter.

One of the features of our museum website is to showcase the history of pet companies and aquarium hobbyists. We welcome outside contributions on company history from anyone who may have worked at a company no longer in business, or one still in business that has been in business for 25 years or more. We also would like any historical information on tropical fish farms or aquariums, birds, dogs, cats, etc., and hobbyists that have contributed significantly to pet & aquarium keeping.

How you can help the Museum of Aquarium and Pet History:

  1. Donate. Become a monthly donor or give as you can.
  2. Donate old pet products you may have such as old aquariums, pet magazines, pet catalogs, old invoices, etc.
  3. Write an article on your company, or do a Zoom interview!
  4. Write an article on a historical pet subject that you are an expert on.
  5. Send us samples of products from your company along with your company’s history to keep on file at the museum.

Thank you for stopping by and stay tuned for lots more aquarium & pet history in the months ahead!

april 2024 Video of the month

In today’s video we take a historical overview of squirrels as pets. We’re going to cover how long squirrels have been kept as pets, the types of squirrels kept as pets, what old literature says about keeping squirrels, famous people who had squirrels as pets, and the MOAPH squirrel cage collection.

MOAPH 5 Minute Video series

The Museum of Aquarium and Pet History just released a new 5-Minute Video! Tune in every Wednesday for a short video featuring a unique artifact from the museum, OR an “unboxing video” for a new treasure just arriving at the museum.

april ARTICLES

The Passing of A Legend - Rosario LaCorte: 1929-2024

The Passing of A Legend – Rosario LaCorte: 1929-2024

On April 8, 2024, Rosario La Corte died quietly in his home surrounded by family.  He was 95.  With his passing, the aquarium hobby lost one of the greatest aquarists ...
The Resurrection of the London Fancy Canary

The Resurrection of the London Fancy Canary

The London Fancy canary is nothing if not an enigma. Doubts have even been expressed as to whether this ancient breed did ever exist as a distinct breed of canary ...
My Life in the Pet Industry - Part 1

My Life in the Pet Industry – Part 1

My name is Steve Feinberg. I spent 45 years working in the pet industry. It never really felt like work. My involvement with pets started when I was 10 years ...
Pet Keeping in 1797 Germany - Chapter 3 Part 1

Pet Keeping in 1797 Germany – Chapter 3 Part 1

This is a historical book written in 1797 about German pet-keeping history, including keeping native fish in captivity. This reprint was privately published and edited by Kurt Jacobs, who wrote ...
The World's Largest Pet Shop

The World’s Largest Pet Shop

Gates Halfin was the owner of National Pet Shops in St. Louis, which during the 1930s was one of the largest pet shops in the world. This 1934 article from ...
Tropical Fish Progress

Tropical Fish Progress

Ida Mellen is perhaps the most famous of all woman aquarists and has a following of men and women fans even to this day. Check out the two interesting ads ...
Tropi-Cure Booth Biggest Hit At Chicago's United Pet Trade Show

Tropi-Cure Booth Biggest Hit At Chicago’s United Pet Trade Show

The article was originally from the September-October 1958 edition of TROPICALS Magazine ...
Aquarium Stock Corner Aquarium

Aquarium Stock Corner Aquarium

A rare corner-style aquarium manufactured for and sold by the Aquarium Stock Company in 1958. The actual aquarium is pictured here but has been made into a deluxe model with ...
September 1929 Pet Shop News Magazine Cover

September 1929 Pet Shop News Magazine Cover

Wouldn’t article writers for pet or aquarium publications love to be paid a $5.00 gold coin for their articles today? A 1929 $5.00 gold coin would be worth $21,389 today! ...
Tropical Fish Breeders of America 1955 Comic

Tropical Fish Breeders of America 1955 Comic

Comic from 1955 advertising the tropical fish boom and how you can get into this growing hobby! ...
Rotastak Hamster Habitat 1975 Ad

Rotastak Hamster Habitat 1975 Ad

We love this item! If you have an old one in your attic, basement, or storage unit, please consider donating it to the museum. Ad from the January 1975 edition ...
1937 National Pet Supply Canary Ad

1937 National Pet Supply Canary Ad

“Don’t let fly by nights wreck your bird business.” Ad from the October 1937 edition of All Pets Magazine ...
1974 Penn Plax SP Pump Ad

1974 Penn Plax SP Pump Ad

Excellent German-made aquarium pumps from Penn-Plax. Was it the price that made them short-lived in the marketplace? Ad from the October 1974 edition of Pet Dealer ...
1974 AquaMod Inc. Aquarium Ad

1974 AquaMod Inc. Aquarium Ad

An interesting aquarium concept from the 1970s. Unfortunately, acrylic aquariums were expensive to manufacture. Does anyone out there have one of these? Ad from the October 1974 edition of Pet ...
Hartz Mountain Letter

Hartz Mountain Letter

Hartz Mountain Letter from the 1930s ...
Cambridge Aquarium Society 1967-1968 Fish Ribbons (England)

Cambridge Aquarium Society 1967-1968 Fish Ribbons (England)

Awards from England taken from the Neal Teitler collection ...
Hackney Haringey Show Awards (England)

Hackney Haringey Show Awards (England)

Awards ranging from 1964-1969. From the Neal Teitler collection ...
Norwalk Aquarium Society 1959 Trophy

Norwalk Aquarium Society 1959 Trophy

Norwalk Aquarium Society 1st Prize award to Harry Oaks, 1959. From the MOAPH archives ...
Hear Amazing Snookie Welch Two Year Old Talking Parakeet 500 Word Vocabulary

Hear Amazing Snookie Welch Two Year Old Talking Parakeet 500 Word Vocabulary

Snookie Welch was a parakeet owned by Minerva and Ralph Welch. He developed an amazing vocabulary from a young age and was famous for his abilities. Hear him at just ...
Collectors of Aquarium Literature - Number 20 October 1987

Collectors of Aquarium Literature – Number 20 October 1987

In this Issue: 1. Part 4-Final Chapter: The 1912-14 “AQUARIUM" Magazine 2. 1988 CAL Auction Rules 3. Now That You’ve Got It, What Do You Do With It? (on collecting ...

SPECIAL VIDEO – MOAPH Turns 1!!

June is MOAPH’s anniversary month! As promised, we have a 1st-anniversary video sharing a look back at memorable video intros from our first year and an inside look at the museum’s restoration studio and the museum library.

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Help The Museum of Aquarium & Pet History expand its collection and physical footprint through a direct donation.  Donations can be one-time or scheduled monthly, quarterly, or annually.  We thank you for your support.

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