Historical Note

Abstract:

Permanent exhibition. Opened approximately 1903 and closed approximately 1937-1938. Located on Floor 4, Section 5 from 1903 to 1926 and Floor 4, Section 9 from 1927 to 1938. The Hall of Dinosaurs at the American Museum of Natural History originally exhibited fossil reptiles (including dinosaurs), amphibians, and fishes. The growth of the exhibition collection led to overcrowding, and the dinosaur specimens were relocated to a larger hall and reopened on March 9, 1927 (1, 1927, p. 138-139). Paleontologists Barnum Brown and Henry Fairfield Osborn oversaw the installation (1, 1925, p. 29).

Description

In 1902, the Museum's dinosaurs were exhibited with other fossil vertebrates in what later became the Fossil Mammal Hall. By 1903, the fossil reptiles, amphibians, and fishes moved into their own hall. This hall included the Brontosaurus, Diplodocus, fossil crocodiles, fossil turtles, and pterodactyls (2, 1902; 3, 1903). The Fossil Fish Hall, in a connecting tower, exhibited a collection of fossil fishes (4, 1911, p. 84-87). The collection of dinosaurs grew quickly and soon the hall was "badly crowded", so much so that the Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton was initially exhibited in the Age of Man Hall until it was moved into the dinosaur hall in 1917 (4, 1920, p. 107; 1, 1917, p. 87-88). Then in 1926-1927, the dinosaurs were transferred to a larger, adjacent hall; and the fossil fishes remained in the tower to become the Bashford Dean Memorial Hall of Fossil Fishes (4, 1927, p. 39).

The Hall of Dinosaurs contained the Cope Collection and featured mounts of Gorgosaurus, Struthiomimus, Triceratops, Trachodon, Corythosaurus, Saurolophus, Tyrannosaurus rex, Brontosaurus, Allosaurus, Anklyosaurus, and Paleoscincus, Eryops, Narosaurus and Brontosaurus restorations, and the dinosaur mummy (5, 1906; 4, 1913, p. 95-101; 1, 1928, p. 97-100). The Stegosaurus was added in 1932, Plateosaurus in 1934, and Leptoceratops in 1935 (1, 1932, p. 60; 1, 1934, p. 8; 1, 1935, p. 10).

By 1929 plans were already underway to create more public space for the dinosaurs. The 1929 Annual Report bemoans a lack of funds for a “new Jurassic Dinosaur Hall” and for an unnamed “superb dinosaur” offered to the Museum for $14,000. The report also mentions a need for more laboratory production, including more employees, in order to open the proposed new dinosaur hall in two years (AR 1929 p. 2). By 1930, the Dinosaur Hall was being replanned and funds were acquired from the City of New York for the construction of the new Jurassic Hall that year (1, 1930, p. 938; 1, 1932, 76).

By 1938, the new Jurassic Hall (Hall of Early Dinosaurs) was complete and the east wing housing the Hall of Dinosaurs was rearranged to become the Hall of Cretaceous Dinosaurs (Hall of Late Dinosaurs) (1, 1938, p. 2).

REFERENCES

(1) American Museum of Natural History. Annual Reports. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1917-1938.

(2) Matthew, W.D., The Hall of Fossil Vertebrates. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1902.

(3) Matthew, W.D., The Collection of Fossil Vertebrates: A Guide Leaflet to the Exhibition Halls of Vertebrate Palaeontology at the American Museum of Natural History. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1903.

(4) American Museum of Natural History. General Guide to the Exhibition Halls of the American Museum of Natural History. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1920-1927.

(5) Matthew, W.D., The Mounted skeleton of Brontosaurus in the American Museum of Natural History: a Guide Leaflet to the Collections of Vertebrate Paleaontology. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1906.

Information for the hall appears in the following Museum publications

Annual Reports for years 1922 (page 19-20); 1924 (page 51); 1925 (page 7, 18, 29, 123, 141); 1926 (page 48, 143); 1927 (page 32, 35, 47, 90, 139); 1928 (page 42, 61) 1930 (page 38,) 1932 (page 60); 1934 (page 8); 1935 (page 10)

General Guides for years 1911 (page 81); 1913 (page 94); 1914 (page 103); 1916 (112); 1918 (103); 1919 (107); 1920 (107); 1921 (107); 1922 (107); 1923 (107); 1926 (3, 30, 39); 1927 (page 3, 30, 39); 1928 (page 5, 7, 96-100); 1929 (page 5, 7, 96-100); 1930 (page 5, 7, 96-100); 1931 (page 5, 15, 112-115); 1932 (page 5, 15, 112-115); 1933 (page 5, 15, 112, 114-117); 1934 (page 5, 15, 114, 116-119); 1935 (page 5, 15, 114, 116-119); 1935 (page 5, 15, 114, 116-119); 1936 (116)

Alternative Name Forms

Outline:

• Uncontrolled name from AMNH publications (dates of use by year)
• Dinosaur Hall (1904, 1905, 1908, 1910, 1911, 1913, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1932, 1934, 1935)
• Hall of Fossil Fishes (1909)
• Fossil Fish Hall (1911)
• Hall of Dinosaurs (1920, 1925, 1927, 1928, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936)
• Dinosaurs (1926, 1927, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936)
• Age of Dinosaurs (1930)
• Hall of Fossil Reptiles (1905)
• Hall of Fossil Reptiles and Fishes (1911, 1913, 1914, 1918, 1919, 1921, 1922, 1923)
• Fossil Reptiles, Amphibians and Fishes (1916, 1918, 1919, 1921, 1922, 1923)

Places

• New York (N.Y.)
  • Note: AMNH: Floor 4, Section 5. From 1924, AMNH: Floor 4, Section 9.

Topics

• AMNH Permanent Exhibitions