Traveling Route 66 or taking an Illinois road trip? You’ll want to go the way of the dinosaur and visit this fun stop: the Rooftop Sinclair Dinosaur in Wilmington, Illinois.
In 1963 a Sinclair service station opened on Route 66 in Wilmington, Illinois. The business of course had one of the company’s signature mascots: a bright green fiberglass brontosaurus (now known as an Apatosaurus) statue. (See a photo of the original building here.)
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The business eventually closed and the dinosaur eventually was taken down and disappeared but, when a new owner, Gary Geiss, bought the property in 2001, he was determined to bring a Sinclair fiberglass dinosaur back home. He purchased an 80-pound fiberglass Sinclair dinosaur that formerly stood at a gas station from Chattanooga, Tennessee and had the look-a-like added to his roof.
Stop by BTI Tire & Alignment to see this rooftop Sinclair dinosaur.
Wilmington, Illinois is also home to one of the most recognizable Illinois Route 66 roadside attractions: the Gemini Giant muffler man at the Launching Pad Drive In.
Rooftop Sinclair Dinosaur
Address: BTI Tire & Alignment, 205 E Baltimore St #201, Wilmington, IL 60481
Cost: Free to See
Hours: Always visible (business open Monday-Friday, 8AM–5PM)
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