[2] Furuviksparken was founded in 1900 by Oscar Jakobsson and officially opened by count Olle Cronstedt.

Nygren established a youth circus, Furuviksbarnen (the children of Furuvik), which became the main attraction not only in the park but also on travelling tours.

Nyhren also introduced live concerts with famous artists, like Louis Armstrong, Jussi Björling and Sammy Davis.

The zoo attracted a degree of international attention when it was reported in March 2009 that a chimpanzee residing there had planned attacks on visitors.

Santino planned attacks by taking stones from the protective moat and placing them only on the side facing the visitors on the island where he lived.