June 16, 2009
Where is the Dinosaur Capital of the World?
A super-sized Tyrannosaurus greets visitors to Drumheller in Alberta, Canada. iStockphoto
Earlier this week the Burpee Museum of Natural History and the Discovery Center Museum, both in Rockford, Illinois, held a ground-breaking ceremony on a $10 million expansion for the museums. The construction will give both institutions more exhibition space, and if the comments of Burpee Museum of Natural History director Alan Brown are anything to go by, the space will be packed with dinosaurs:
“This is a culmination of four years of very hard work trying to raise the funds. We’re very excited about it. The impact on Rockford we think is going to be significant to tourism, reputation. We think we’re going to be the dinosaur capital of the world.”
Which raises the question: what is the present dinosaur capital of the world? Naturally, it depends on who you ask. The town of Drumheller in Alberta, Canada justifiably touts itself as a top dino spot, but the town of Glen Rose, Texas has also been playing up its reputation as a place rich in dinosaur fossils. Which town deserves the title of the “Dinosaur Capital of the World?”
Loading ...If you selected “other,” let us know in the comments what town or city you would nominate as “Dinosaur Capital of the World.”
Sign up for our free email newsletter and receive the best stories from Smithsonian.com each week.
44 Comments »
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI
anyone wondering why drumheller makes the list, needs to check out my blog posts of the last 6 months…
though to be fair we may not be dinosaur capital of the world (there are too many criteria to choose between)… it’d definately have to be dino capital of canada though!
I marked other, because I think Vernal, Utah has a shot. But we will see if Burpee can achieve that claim.
Jordan, MT!
Not the town itself, but the bordering Hell Creek Formation is incredibly fossiliferous.
Where in the world can you find the greatest variety of bird life? Answer that and you’ve got your dinosaur capital of the world.
Glen Rose, Texas seems to slip under the radar and should not. Fossils galore still abound.
Glen Rose, TX is a tiny town south of Fort Worth which is known for its dino tracks, fossils and Dinosaur Valley State Park which is home to Dino World! Come visit!
Glen Rose, Texas is an obvious choice because of the
discovery of dinosaur trackways just after the turn of the century. It is the home of Dinosaur Valley State Park and the discovery in the late 80′s of the most complete
Acrocanthosaurus discovered to date. Fossilmania, the largest fossil swap and sales event in the nation, is held each year in October. Dinosaur World’,has over 100 dinosaur models on display.
Wow. I’m a bit shocked that Drumheller is getting blown away by Glen Rose. I’ve been to Drumheller. The place is amazing. The dinosaur museum is literally spectacular. Room after room after room of mounted skeletons. Glen Rose has Tracks. Wonderful in its own way, but tracks are not dinosaurs. Ok, and a park with a 100 life sized dinosaur models. But if you actually want to see real DINOSAURS, not just their footprints, and not someone’s artistic interpretation of them, go to Drumheller.
Drumheller’ museum might have rooms of mounted skeletons
of dinosaur but where do you think they come from?
Glen Rose has tracks that came out of Glen Rose.
The vast majority of Drumheller’s specimens come right from around Drumheller. Dinosaur National Park is just to the south, and Horseshoe Canyon is right around the corner. The area has produced literally tons of dinosaur fossils. I guess to each his own. Footprints are of enormous value to science, but they are not the dinosaurs themselves, and they just don’t inspire in the same way as seeing the creatures who made the tracks. (At least in my opinion.)
I really think Vernal, Utah should have a good shot at the title. I believe more fossils have been removed from that area than the others mentioned.
A town in SE Utah. I don’t remember its name, but I have been there and have seen the on-going excavations on the face of large rock formation.
I think Rock Springs Wyoming. They have wonderful specimens and some of the largest.
I think Utah should be the Dinosaur Capital of the world. They have made some teriffic discoveries and are still finding them. Give them a pat on the back and list them as one of the most important states where dinosaurs are concerned..
As far as major discoveries and fossil beds go; my vote would definitely be for either Liaoning or Drumheller, and the Royal Tyrell in Drumheller is a world class museum that shouldn’t be missed.
However if you go with town spirit, the good folks in Rockford, Illinois and Glen Rose, Texas seem to hard to beat.
WE LIVED IN GLEN ROSE FOR SIXTEN YEARS AND I FOUND IT INTERESTING AND A WONDERFUL SIGHT TO SEE THE DINOSAURE TRACKS IN THE RIVER BED AND TO KNOW THAT SOMETHING THAT BIG ROAMED THERE OS MANY YEARS AGO. WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGTH THAT A TOWN SO SMALL COULD HOLD SOMETHING SO BIG.
Show me your World’s Largest Dinosaur, not to mention the holotype specimens that literally came out of the ground in proximity to the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, Alberta!
The only thing that’s bigger about dinosaurs in Texas is the number of dollars available to buy publicity to suggest that they are the Dinosaur Capital of the World.
Drumheller, on the other hand has been (and will be) the reigning Capital for over 100 years – and that won’t change anytime soon.
No where in the world can even begin to compare.
Put that on your discovery channel.
I find it interesting that most of the arguments favouring Glen Rose center around businesses. In Drumheller we research the local fossils – we don’t sell them.
Our documented discoveries date from 1884. The Drumheller Valley was the site of the Great Dinosaur Rush in the early 1900′s. Many specimens in American museums come from here.
For 125 years this valley has been associated with dinosaurs. We are the Dinosaur Capital of the World!
Drumheller, and Dinosaur Provincial Park to the south are recognized World Heritage Sites. In Dinosaur provincial park you can’t walk anywhere without tripping over dinosaur fossils. Oh, yeah, please remember- the biggest nest of dinosaur eggs comes from Alberta. (and yes, they’re in the RTM’s collection)
Drumheller’s Royal Tyrell Museum collection beats a footprint trail.
If you’re wanting to compare town spirit – I just got back from taking the family to Drumheller. Everyone’s dino-orientated. Oh, yes, one more thing….
I met people from all over the world who travelled to Canada just to go to Drumheller. It was the 1st place they thought of one someone said dinosaur.
Drumheller is simply spectacular. From the Royal Tyrell Museum, to Dinosaur Provincal Park, to the amazing variety of specimens found in that area, there’s a reason its been called Dinosaur capital of the world for so many years.
I find it interesting that so many of the Glen Rose people make a big deal out of the tracks when, they’re just tracks. Sure, they’re important, but only to a minimal extent. Dinosaur World may have 100 or so models on display, but the Royal Tyrell Museum has more. I’d know, because I’ve been there before.
[...] month I asked readers of this blog to vote for which location deserved the title of “Dinosaur Capital of the World.” Glen Rose, Texas quickly jumped into the lead, but many commenters voiced their preference [...]
Online polls do not work and are not a true test of who is the Dinosaur Capital of the World. I’d like to see the facts not a poll run by population and word of mouth.
Im curious how many US voters voted for The US site and how many Canadian voters voted for the Canadian site. Probably quite bias and the number of potential voters from the US will be 10 times higher than Canada based on population alone.
hailing from drumheller myself, i dont know why anyone why try to take our dinosaur capital of the world distinction, glen rose, may have tracks, but lets see them have a world renowned, museum with a royal distinction, tons of dinosaur statues all around town, and the worlds largest dinosaur, and the dinstinction of dinosaur capital of the world for nearly 100 years, and i do agree with darylc i think the the majority of american voters voted for glen falls, and canadians, drumheller
Drumheller, Alberta Canada:
Has the “Royal” assent to the Museum and site of numerous fossil finds in the world. Guess we tend to be patriotic to our regions but look at the history of this Canadian site. School children attend this facility as a field trip and it is an amazing institution. Children learn about archeology, how they process and preserve a site and casting of the archeologist. It is amazing to learn the painstaking techniques of the archeologist while at a dig. People from the US of A should come visit this most interesting museum, take a hike in the badlands and area. There are signs all around that if you should find something ( fossils) that it is the property of the museum and not to be removed from the area.!!
When I am anywhere other than home and someone ask where I am from, I tell them Glen Rose…They say “Oh, the Dinosaur place.” I think we should be the capital for many reasons, evidently we are an important place, Smithsonian Museum has some of our tracks on display. I don’t want to offend anyone, but if the Canadians need the title to feel important…give it to them. After all we are from Texas, the friendliest place on Earth. we have LOTS to be proud of!
texas, friendliest place on earth, dont make me laugh
I have lived in Drumheller all my life. There is no other place that is more deserving of the title “Dinosaur Capital of the world” than Drumheller. Dinosaur’s are an everyday occurance in Drumheller, with statues on every street, corner, a world class dinosaur museum with all local fossils and a booming tourist economy foscused on dinosaurs. When people say dinosaurs the next thing they will say is Drumheller.
Being a Canadian, I am proud of Drumheller. However I have never been to any of the other sites and cannot attest to their validity of their claim. Perhaps a paleontologist or two who have been to most, if not all of these sites and state their opinion.
I voted for Drumheller, but that is based on my ignorance of the other places. I certainly wouldn’t vote based on patriotism alone.
As for Texans being friendly – I wouldn’t doubt it. I have found Americans as a whole, friendlier and more approachable than Canadians. And I am a Canadian!
Drumheller and the surrounding Badlands are amazing .
You have to see it to appreciate it for the Dinosaur capital check it out here is the Royal Tyrrell Museum
http://www.tyrrellmuseum.com/index.htm
Drumheller is a success story and the dialogue is timely as it was conceived in the early 1980′s when the economy looked very much like it does today. The insightful government of the day recognized opportunity and had the wisdom to invest in infrastructure in order to stimulate a disappearing coal mining town with a world-class tourist attraction, the Royal Tyrrell Museum. They had the foresight to attract prestigious scientists to the facility who could understand the resource, the generosity to create expansive public galleries in order to share the resource and incredibly optimistic projections. All estimates were surpassed when the Museum attracted over 500,000 visitors in its inaugural year. In the almost 25 years since the Museum’s inception the Town of Drumheller has grown up around it. The people are kind hearted, the businesses humble and the intentions clearly noble. Drumheller is proud of its history, its success and its profile and works in a modest manner to preserve it. The people, passion, and vast fossil resources combine to create what is undeniably the Dinosaur Capital of the World. Governments across the globe might benefit from reflecting on this model. Infrastructure investment today, if properly allocated, will surely create a better tomorrow for generations.
Of course it has to be Drumheller but only because Dinosaur Provincial Park, a UNESCO Heritage Site isn’t on the list and should be. Most of the best dinosaur exhibits around the world came from there. Unfortunately, or fortunately, when it came time to stop selling off our heritage they built a museum to showcase them in Drumheller. A world-class exhibit in itself but not the primary source of the fossils.
On a separate note, they have found a whole new cache of fossils in Pipestone Creek, just west of Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada recently. This might even give Drumheller a run for its money in the not-to-distant future.
CANADA ROCKS!! (pun intended)
Cherry Stephens – MOST of Drumheller’s dinosaurs and fossils come directly from Drumheller and areas nearby!!
We live in the Drumheller area and believe that this is definitely a place to see. The town is surrounded by the dinosaurs. We live 40km from town and we have evidence on our farm to support our claim. The coulees are large and are a work of art. A real treat is to view them from the air!
[...] this summer I asked readers to decide which city deserved the title of “Dinosaur Capital of the World.” Glen Rose, Texas took an early lead, but Drumheller, in Alberta, Canada, is now sitting [...]
How can Glen Rose argue that their claim is reasonable when the lack a museum with real dinosaur skeletons and other artifacts(although we have some lovely dinosaur statues too, just look up), and a park where dinosaurs are the main theme, not their footprints and certainly not camping or picnicking. I am a young resident of Drumheller and have seen the influx of tourists we get each season that come HERE, not to some town in Texas, to see real prehistoric sights. The main point in my argument is that our park and museum are both completely dinosaur-oriented, not just all about the footprints. THerefore I believe Glen Rose deserves the title of “dinosaur footprint capital of the world,” and Drumheller the overall capital. To those that argue other small towns should be the capital, I say that I doubt any of you display your artifacts to the extent and calibre that Drumheller does within its own borders.
Well – let’s see – Albertosaurus is in Alberta – what dino was named after Glen Rose or Texas -the Technosaurus
: Where have most of the dinosaur remains been found in the world?
A: The U.S. is number one in kinds of dinosaurs found, though the single best place in numbers of species found is Dinosaur Provincial Park in Alberta, Canada, where some 37 kinds of dinosaurs have been found. Mongolia and Argentina are now sources of many interesting dinosaurs. (Don Lessem)
I’m a Drumheller advocate!
Drumheller for the Win!
You can see that people are only educated in American science and the rest of the world doesn’t count. Stuttgart Germany has been the site of many fossil findings as shown at the museum in Frankfurt germany and Argentina deserves mention and has been the site of some monstrous dinosaur findings. So lets get a course in Archeological Geography and learn more of our past world not just our neighborhood.
[...] Brian Switek polled readers about the Dinosaur Capital of the World, he included “Bedrock” as a gag answer. It did pretty well—beating out [...]
I live in Drumheller. I’ve visited Glen Rose.
As lovely as Glen Rose and the people who live there are, it’s really no contest. Easy vote for Drumheller.
What others aparently don’t know is not only does Glen Rose have tracks it has the first ever discovered sauropod tracks. The first footprints of a long neck that proved that longnecks didnt live only on water but on land as well. Drumheller might have skeletons, but you go ten years from now it is going to have the same skeletons it has today. Glen Rose, everytime it rains and everytime the river floods, more of the river is cutt out uncovering more and more sauropod and theropod tracks. Glen Rose is by far the dinosaur capital of the world because to learn more about dinosaurs you dont look at the skeletion you look at there foot prints and you learn a whole lot more.
So, Glen Rose has tracks (and more tracks get uncovered when it rains), but they are still just that….tracks.
My backyard has rabbit tracks all over it, but that does not make my backyard the rabbit capital of the world.
And do you honestly think that you learn more from tracks than the actual remains (skeleton)? That is absurd!
Glen Rose is NOT the Dinosaur Capital of the world.