Kentucky Science Center to reveal new name for World's Fair Triceratops figure next month

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Kentucky Science Center will hold a prehistoric party next month.

The party is set for Saturday, Sept. 17 to honor the refurbished World's Fair Triceratops that just moved back to the center.

Guests will have the chance to get up close and personal with costumed dinosaur characters at the Dino Dance Party and meet modern reptiles. They'll also have the chance to try their hand at paleontology-themed activities.

At noon on the day of the party, officials will reveal the winning name of the triceratops, which was part of the 1964 World's Fair.

It was one of nine fiberglass dinosaurs created for part of an exhibit led by the Sinclair Oil company for the 1964 World's Fair.

After the fair, the triceratops formerly known as Lottie hit the road and traveled across the U.S. before being gifted to Louisville. Its first home was the Louisville Zoo in 1970, but in 1979 began calling the Kentucky Science Center's parking lot home where it stayed until late 2007.

Science Center officials said the dinosaur survived the 1994 flood in Louisville "thanks to quick-thinking staff who cut a whole in the dinosaur's leg to prevent it from floating away as the flood waters rose."

The dinosaur was moved to a storage warehouse because of a proposed construction project, which stalled. After that, there wasn't funding available for repairs to put the dinosaur back on display.

Years later, in 2018, a local man found Lottie in Louisville's California neighborhood behind some train tracks. He made it his mission to bring her back from extinction with the creation of a group called "Operation CARLOT," which stands for Community Action to Rescue Louisville's Own Triceratops.

It's unclear how and why the dinosaur was moved from the warehouse to an outdoor space in the California neighborhood where it was found around 2018.

Operation CARLOT was working with the Kentucky Science Center to bring the triceratops back to a place of prominence.

The 10-foot tall, 25-foot long, nearly 5,000 pound dinosaur is now back downtown on the top of the parking lot elevator at the Kentucky Science Center to keep it safe from drivers and the Ohio River.

"Dino Day" at the center runs from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Sept. 17 Most of the activities of the day are included with general admission tickets.

For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.

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