Dinosaur Land (Virginia)
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| Location | White Post, Virginia, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°03′36″N 78°08′24″W / 39.059866°N 78.139881°W |
| Status | Operating |
| Opened | 1963 |
| Owner | Joann Leight and Barbara Seldon |
| Area | 2 acres (0.81 ha) |
Dinosaur Land is a tourist attraction in White Post, Virginia established in 1963. The park has more than fifty dinosaur statues; the differing styles of the recreations demonstrate changing anatomical knowledge and aesthetic design over the decades.
Dinosaur Land was started around 1963 by Joseph Geraci as a gift shop called "Rebel Korner"; the name was changed to Dinosaur Land in 1967.[1][2] Geraci admired other dinosaur sculptures created by James Q. Sidwell, a dinosaur replica designer for the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, and commissioned Sidwell to create sculptures for a gift shop.[3][1] The site was started with five dinosaurs created with wooden frames covering wire mesh and fiberglass; new sculptures were added regularly throughout the years.[2][4] Several of the original dinosaurs were covered with fur and had moving parts, such as a woolly mammoth statue with a moving trunk and flapping ears; those elements have been removed as they were difficult to maintain.[5][2]
About 35 of the dinosaurs on display were created by Sidwell.[2] The park's newer, more scientifically accurate dinosaurs have been created by Mark Cline, creator of nearby roadside attractions Dinosaur Kingdom II and Foamhenge.[5] The site also includes non-dinosaur figures, such as a 70-foot purple octopus, a 60-foot-long shark, and a King Kong statue which provides a photo opportunity with visitors standing in its oversized hand.[1] Figures representing horror creatures such as Dracula and the Mummy were removed after they proved too frightening for younger children.[2]
When Geraci died in 1987, his daughters continued to run the site.[5] As of 2015, two of his daughters, Joann Leight and Barbara Seldon, were running the business, with members of the extended family taking roles in maintaining the site and running the gift shop.[4][2]
The park's gift shop sells educational material and toys, including dinosaur memorabilia; the site has been criticized by some visitors for selling Confederate flags and figurines featuring blackface.[1]