Get closer
to wonder. Plumpton Park Zoo, Rising Sun, Maryland
An unforgettable wildlife adventure in Rising Sun, Maryland.
- Open 7 days
- Free parking
- 200+ animals
- About 10 minutes from I-95
Wild moments. Lasting memories.
A family zoo in Rising Sun, Maryland
Plumpton Park Zoo is a nonprofit family zoo in Cecil County, Maryland. About half of our animals were taken in from owners who could no longer care for them. Families get close togiraffes, white lions, tigers, bears, wolves, sloths and zebras, explore the zoo at their own pace, and meet the animals without the crowds or the cost of a big-city zoo.
There is history on the grounds too. A water-powered gristmill built here in 1734 by Jeremiah Brown Sr. still stands beside North East Creek, and the site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Read the history of Plumpton Park Zoo.
Big animals. Small zoo. Remarkably close.
At a large city zoo you watch the animals from a distance, across a crowd. Plumpton Park Zoo is small enough that you don’t. The enclosures are open and spacious, the paths are quiet, and there is time to stand and watch — which is exactly why families with young children keep coming back.
Why families visit Plumpton Park Zoo
- Meet our giraffes at the giraffe feeding station, at noon on weekdays and 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on weekends (11 a.m. and 1 p.m. daily in summer), weather permitting (cancelled below 50°F)
- White lions — one of fewer than 20 zoos in the United States to have them
- Tigers, bears, wolves and sloths, plus zebras, camels, alpacas and siamang gibbons
- Snack bar and gift shop — hot food and hand-dipped ice cream at admissions, and a gift shop inside the 1734 mill; picnic tables if you bring your own
- Gemstone and fossil panning at the Jeremiah Brown Mining Company sluice — keep what you find
- School field trips and group visits, with guided educational tours available as an add-on
