The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur – Gas Station in South Dakota

If you had a choice of stopping for gas at a gas station with a big green dinosaur or one without a big green dinosaur, which would you choose? Duh. No contest. Obviously you’d choose gas station with a green dinosaur. And that is why Sinclair gas stations are the perfect stop for roadside-attraction loving road trippers: they have the Sinclair Oil Dinosaur.

Gas stations are a popular location for roadside attractions to hang out at. (Or to BE: just check out the Shell-shaped gas station in Winston-Salem, North Carolina or the airplane-shaped service station in Powell, Tennessee!) I’ve seen many a pink elephant next to the pumps. With such competition over gas nowadays, often with a station on all four corners off major highways, it’s no wonder these outposts would do anything to get you to choose them over the guy across the street.

The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book - Everything You Need to Have and Record an Epic Road Trip! By Valerie Bromann

The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book

Everything You Need to Have and Record an Epic Road Trip!

Enjoy fun games and challenges to pass the time on your next road trip and have a keepsake to look back on for years to come with this entertaining must-have for your next vacation.

Enter Sinclair.

The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur at a  Gas Station in South Dakota.
The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur at a Gas Station in South Dakota.

What gas station has a green dinosaur? Sinclair Oil!

Sinclair Oil was formed in 1916 by Harry Sinclair and soon became one of the seventh largest oil companies in America. The company is recognized by the Terror-Free Oil Initiative as they do not buy oil from terrorism-sponsoring states, such as those in the Middle East.

While that’s all and good, the company is probably best known as the gas station with a dinosaur logo. The logo is so popular the oil company is spoofed in many Pixar movies (like Cars and Toy Story) as a fictional company called Dinoco.

The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur at a  Gas Station in South Dakota.
The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur at a Gas Station in South Dakota.

Why does Sinclair have a dinosaur?

In 1930 Sinclair adopted the now famous Apatosaurus (brontosaurus) “Dino” that still graces the gas station’s logo. The idea and advertising came when the company was promoting lubricants refined from crude oil thought to have formed when dinosaurs roamed the earth.

Not only does the Sinclair dinosaur appear on the company’s logo, packaging, and other Sinclair Oil merchandise, it also makes an appearance at many of the stations itself in the form of a fiberglass reptile.

The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur at a  Gas Station in South Dakota.
The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur at a Gas Station in South Dakota.

Where are Sinclair Oil Dinosaurs located?

This big green dinosaur can be found at some of the Sinclair gas stations throughout the United States. I first found this Sinclair dinosaur at an i90 gas station in South Dakota on my way to Mount Rushmore.

I just had to give him a big wet sloppy kiss and a hug!

The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur at a  Gas Station in South Dakota.
The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur at a Gas Station in South Dakota.

The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur

Location: Off of I-90, South Dakota
Cost: Free (gas will cost you)
Hours: Always visible.
Date: August 30, 2008


Love dinosaur roadside attractions? Be sure to check out the Rapid City Dinosaur Park while you’re in South Dakota!


Pin this roadside attraction:

The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur is the iconic mascot of the Sinclair gas station. I visited my first at a stop on a South Dakota road trip. And I gave that dino a big hug! Add see a Sinclair dinosaur to your road trip bucket lists and travel itineraries for a fun family vacation stop!
#SouthDakotaRoadsideAttractions #SouthDakotaRoadsideAttraction #RoadsideAttractions #RoadsideAttraction #RoadTrip #SouthDakotaRoadTrip #ThingsToDoInSouthDakota #SouthDakotaFamilyVacations #SouthDakotaAwesomeRoadTrip
The Sinclair Oil Dinosaur is the iconic mascot of the Sinclair gas station. I visited my first at a stop on a South Dakota road trip. And I gave that dino a big hug! Add see a Sinclair dinosaur to your road trip bucket lists and travel itineraries for a fun family vacation stop!

Plan Your Road Trip

Valerie Bromann

Founder & ROad Trip Expert

Valerie Bromann is a a website manager, content creator, and writer from Chicago, Illinois (currently living in Dallas, Texas). As an avid road tripper who has visited hundreds of roadside attractions, Val always pull over for a world’s largest thing. Founder of Silly America and author of The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book, she visits, photographs, and writes about all the weird tourist destinations she visits and offers road trip planning advice and inspiration based on her own travels so you can hit the road for yourself.

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Last modified: July 5, 2020
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The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book - Everything You Need to Have and Record an Epic Road Trip! By Valerie Bromann

The Road Trip Journal & Activity Book

Everything You Need to Have and Record an Epic Road Trip!

BY Valerie Bromann

Enjoy fun games and challenges to pass the time on your next road trip and have a keepsake to look back on for years to come with this entertaining must-have for your next vacation.

The road trip you’ve been dreaming of starts here! Journal about your stops and get to know your fellow passengers with activities and exercises designed to pass the time and bring you closer together. Instead of “Are we there yet?” you’ll find yourself asking, “We’re there already?”. Complete with prompts you can turn to while driving between locations, this journal will one day be a memento of your life-changing trip.