When the Sinclair Oil Company wanted to create an exhibit of life-sized dinosaurs for the 1964-65 World’s Fair, they reached out to the American Museum of Natural History for recommendations on who would be suited to the task. Louis Paul Jonas was recommended, and at 66 years old, he took on the largest project of his life. The Sinclair Oil Company commissioned Jonas Studios in Claverack, NY to produce nine life size dinosaurs for their exhibit. This monumental team project involving paleontologists, engineers and robotics specialists took three years to complete and touched the lives of millions.

Today dinosaurs are such a common and accepted part of our culture that we barely think twice about them, but in the 1960’s they were a novel and exciting thing to see and learn about. That excitement brought people by the thousands to Jonas Studios as Jonas and his team of craftsmen worked to create the World’s Fair exhibit. Steps and landings were built up to the windows, so people could pier in and watch the work in progress. Tour groups and reporters were accommodated on a regular basis. Upon completion, Sinclair and the City of Hudson put on a ‘Dino Day’ celebration and parade where Mr. Jonas was honored and given a golden “key to the city.” He told his family, “If I never do another job, I shall feel fulfilled.”

The life-size dinosaurs floated down the Hudson River on a barge to the fair. Although highly publicized, it was an utterly dumbfounding site to those who were not prepared for it. The barge paused at Batter Park, on the lower tip of Manhattan, where dignitaries greeted Mr. Jonas, and a half a dozen fireboats shot off arching streams of water in honor of his achievement. Sinclair’s Dinoland, located in the Transportation Area, was one of the Fair’s most popular exhibits.

The parade float will recreate the barge in miniature in memory of this historic event. Look for the launch of the Louis Paul Jonas museum website that is currently being developed.