Ever since childhood, Jean Adams knew that strange bones were scattered around her North Dakota ranch.

“My Grandmother actually found the fossil bones while looking for her turkeys. She followed a trail over a hill and found some fossil teeth and bones, which she brought home.”

“As children, we used to play with the fossils in Grandmother Cora's button box. We'd also go out in the pasture to look for bones and gather some of them.” —Jean Adams

Jean's sister-in-law, Evelyn Sheldrup, brought the bones to the University of Minnesota.

“At different times, we brought family out to visit us on our ranch. One day for something to do, I took Evelyn out to see the fossil bones. We boxed some up, and Evelyn brought them to the University of Minnesota. Eventually, they were given to Bruce Erickson at the Science Museum of Minnesota, which led to 20 years or more of research.”—Jean Adams