Dinosaur Discoveries in North America

Early Dinosaur History in the United States

Where and when were dinosaur fossils first discovered in the United States?

The first dinosaur fossils collected in the United States were discovered in 1787 in New Jersey by Caspar and Matelock Wistar of Philadelphia. They read a description of their findings before the American Philosophical Society in 1787, but the report of their discovery would not be published for 75 years.