Changing the World

In the Footsteps of Giants

The Sarah and Ernest Butler Dinosaur Trackways Building will return the Texas Science & Natural History Museum’s 113-million-year-old dinosaur trackways to public view.
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Rendering by McKinney York Architects
One of Texas’ most significant fossil discoveries has been out of the public eye since 2013. Now, with a lead gift from Austin philanthropists Sarah and Ernest Butler, the museum is moving forward with plans to conserve the trackways and showcase them for generations to come.

The 113-million-year-old dinosaur trackways discovered near Glen Rose, Texas, a small town southwest of Fort Worth, were identified in 1938 and excavated in 1940 by paleontologist Roland T. Bird. Preserved in limestone during the Cretaceous Period, the footprints were left by a massive sauropod dinosaur and a theropod dinosaur.

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In recognition of the Butlers’ lead gift, the museum will name the new Sarah and Ernest Butler Dinosaur Trackways Building, which will house the newly conserved fossils and create an immersive visitor experience. UT’s exceptional museums and collections serve as destinations for the community to connect with each other and learn, and the revitalization of Texas Science & Natural History Museum is a shining example of how the Forty Acres is evolving to meet the needs of the future.
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A Community Resource:

The Sarah and Ernest Butler Dinosaur Trackways Building:

  • Expands the museum’s educational programming for pre-K–college students, families and lifelong learners
  • Immerses visitors in native Texas plants and connects today’s landscapes with the ancient past through exhibits and gardens
  • Expected to open in late 2027
The trackways were displayed beginning in 1940 in a small limestone building adjacent to the museum. The building closed to the public in 2013 due to structural concerns and environmental conditions that threatened the fossils’ long-term preservation. The new, state-of-the-art facility will provide a protected environment and allow visitors to walk around the trackways for the first time since they were lifted from that Texas riverbed.

“This project represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to safeguard one of Texas’ most iconic fossil discoveries.”

Carolyn Connerat

Managing Director, Texas Science & Natural History Museum

The Butlers have long supported education and the arts in Austin, including naming the Butler School of Music in UT’s College of Fine Arts. Their leadership on the Dinosaur Trackways Building provides a foundation for others to join this important effort.

“With the Butlers’ support, we will preserve these remarkable fossils while creating new ways for visitors, students and researchers to engage with Texas’ deep natural history, says Carolyn Connerat, managing director of Texas Science & Natural History Museum. “We invite others who share our commitment to education and preservation to help us make this vision a reality.”

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Dr. David Vanden Bout, Dean of the College of Natural Sciences, with Sarah and Ernest Butler and Carolyn Connerat

Texas Leader Magazine

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