The legend is back: “Walking with Dinosaurs” returns to KAMU. Meet six iconic dinosaurs emerging from incredible dig sites and discover stories of struggle, love and survival. Watch the three-night event on June 16-18 from 7-9 p.m. on KAMU-TV or our online livestream.
Did you know the Brazos Valley almost became home to a rare dinosaur fossil? Here’s its story:
Wouldn’t it be cool to have a dinosaur named after you?
The legendary animals have captivated human interest — and wallets — since the word ‘dinosaur’ was coined in 1852. They dominate toy aisles. We all probably know kids who can recite numerous dinosaur names and facts. And they’ve been key parts of literature, movies and theme parks. For example, the “Jurassic Park” movie franchise has earned over $6 billion worldwide at the box office.
Many dinosaur fossils are nicknamed after the people who discovered them. There’s “Sue” the T. Rex in Chicago and “Stan” the T. Rex in Abu Dhabi. Some are given a ferocious name, like “Apex” the Stegosaurus in New York City.
At the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., there’s a Nodosaur fossil nicknamed “Easton,” after a three-year-old boy from Austin.
Someday, it will be the ultimate flex for Easton. What little kid wouldn’t want a dinosaur named after them? He may never meet another kid that lucky. Maybe he’ll even want to visit his dinosaur. For now, though, he just wants to get into Dad’s home office to play with his fossil collection.
“He is not allowed to come in here unsupervised,” said Dr. Binh Pham, Easton’s father, with a laugh. “He loves T. Rex. He loves Brachiosaurus. He loves Triceratops. But a three-year-old can drop a very expensive fossil.”
Pham is a gastroenterologist based in Austin, but in his free time, he’s a passionate dinosaur enthusiast and private fossil collector.
“It’s one of those fascinations that starts at a young age,” Pham said. “Most of us grow out of it to some degree — I didn’t.”
Tastefully placed fossils and replicas fill his office. He travels to Montana or Wyoming nearly every year to dig for fossils for a few days. He dedicates considerable time and money to his hobby and hopes Easton will follow in his (dinosaur) tracks.
“Dinosaur names are some of the first words that he spoke,” Pham said. “But I’ve told my wife that if it turns out all he likes about fossils are movies and stuffed animals, then I will donate my collection for the world to see.”
The dinosaur that shares Easton’s name is at the Smithsonian because of Pham’s philanthropy. After purchasing the fossil from a friend in 2019, Pham donated the 110-bone fossil — one of the most complete Nodosaurs ever found — to the museum for research in 2022.
Originally found in Wyoming in 2012, scientists at the Smithsonian believe it’s an undescribed species of Nodosaur.
“It’s especially significant because Nodosaurs are rare fossils in that particular time and place,” said Dr. Matthew Carrano, the curator of dinosauria at the Smithsonian. “Any new examples are scientifically valuable. This specimen has a lot of the armor and some of the skeleton preserved together and that makes it even more important.”
Pham was floored at the chance to donate something so significant to the Smithsonian. But this fossil didn’t go straight from Wyoming to Washington. It almost ended up at the Brazos Valley Museum of Natural History in Bryan.
A Museum-Changing Opportunity
Dr. Deborah Cowman’s museum will never be confused with the Smithsonian. She knows that. It’s attached to the Brazos Center in Bryan, hidden behind a shopping center, and for the most part, all exhibits and collections share one large space. But don’t tell that to her ambition.
“You can be small but still be good,” said Cowman, the executive director of the Brazos Valley Museum of Natural History. “We always joke that we’re like the mouse that roars.”
She passionately believes the Brazos Valley community deserves a high-quality natural history museum. Cowman pushes her team to create influential and engaging children’s camps, outreach programs and exhibits. The museum was established in 1961 after Texas A&M University closed its on-campus exhibition.
“Scientists who grew up in this area tell us they got their start in natural history or science through our camps,” Cowman said. “They found their inspiration here.”
The camps are a shining example of the museum’s impact on the community. Ultimately, though, a museum needs to display interesting things to bring people in. What provides those interesting things? Money — or relationships. In the case of the Nodosaur fossil, it’s the second one. 
“I instantly connected with Deborah because of her enthusiasm, energy and drive,” Pham said. “The Brazos Valley museum is kind of this museum that can.”
When Pham purchased the Nodosaur fossil, he originally intended to display it in his home. When he started to piece the fossil together, he realized it would be nearly 20 feet long and might be more appropriate as a museum display.
“I had the opportunity to donate it to other museums,” Pham said. “But I didn’t know if they would put it in a box, add it to their other material in the back, and never look at it again. I knew the Brazos Valley museum would display it and appreciate it.”
The Prestigious Twist
Before the fossil could be donated, the 110 bones needed to be prepared. Pham shipped them to Georgia, enlisting the help of the late Dr. Steve Nicklas, an archaeologist and paleontologist who originally discovered the fossil.
When Nicklas began reviewing the bones, unusual armor plates caught his eye. They seemed out of place for what he knew about Nodosaurs. He took pictures and sent them to the director of the Smithsonian museum. Impressed and surprised, the director believed the plates might indicate a new species. That’s when the once-in-a-lifetime request happened: would Pham donate the fossil to the Smithsonian?
“I was like, ‘holy cow, that’s unbelievable,'” Pham said. “The holy grail of museums. You don’t turn them down.”
Pham was elated with the opportunity. But he also felt bad, knowing how excited the Brazos Valley museum was to receive the fossil. Cowman said she remembers feeling “bittersweet.”
“On one hand, I was a little disappointed, but on the other hand, I was so happy that such an important discovery was going to a major institution,” Cowman said.
Pham asked Nicklas to make a replica of each bone for a custom-made display mount. He still wanted to give something to the Brazos Valley museum and thought a beautiful replica would be the next best thing. The museum unveiled the replica in 2023, showing an interpretation of the fossil at a dig site.
Since the real fossil is behind closed research doors at the Smithsonian, the replica in Bryan-College Station is the only version of this dinosaur on display anywhere in the world — a one-of-a-kind experience for museum visitors.
“Being able to work with people like Binh Pham has added a wonderful dimension to our museum,” Cowman said. “In many ways, this has elevated us.”
Frithiof’s Fossils
When we look back, we often see threads that tie parts of our lives. In this case, there would be no donation, no Nodosaur fossil and no ties to the Brazos Valley museum without fossil collector Ron Frithiof.
“When I started seeing people with fossils, I thought, ‘I’ve only seen these in museums,'” Frithiof said. “It kind of hit me: it’d be cool to find something like that myself.”
Frithiof lives in West Texas but travels to prime fossil-hunting land in Montana or Wyoming for at least a week each year.
“Fossils don’t come in a Walmart bag,” Frithiof said. “I can go days and not find anything. But I know that eventually I’m going to walk over to the right spot and look in the right direction at the right second and find something interesting.”
Frithiof helped dig up Pham’s Nodosaur fossil in Niobrara County, Wyoming, from 2012 to 2014. He was good friends with Nicklas, the archaeologist who initially discovered the fossil and later created the replica display.
“He called me one day and said, ‘I think we found something pretty cool, you need to come up and take a look,'” Frithiof said. “You hardly ever find a complete dinosaur. But we spent a few days digging test holes and figured out that it was a mostly complete animal.”
For the next three years, Frithiof, Nicklas and some of his students from Georgia spent a few weeks each year slowly unearthing the fossil. They found armor, a piece of the jaw, some of the skull, most of the ribs and vertebrae, and more. Once they excavated all 110 bones, the fossil went home with Frithiof to Texas.
“I kept it in my house for a few years, waiting for the right person and the right opportunity,” Frithiof said.
Frithiof and Pham met about six years ago and quickly bonded over their love for dinosaurs. Pham often joins Frithiof for his annual fossil-hunting pilgrimages.
“The Earth has buried these creatures in the ground,” Pham said. “If you’re lucky enough to find something, you’re the first person on Earth to ever lay eyes on it.”
When Frithiof suggested Pham buy his Nodosaur fossil, Pham initially thought it was a crazy idea. He changed his mind when he saw the fossil. But where to put it? That’s when Frithiof introduced Pham to the Brazos Valley museum. After being introduced to the museum by an archeologist friend at A&M years ago, Frithiof has loaned the museum many fossils and artifacts of various sizes and values.
“The museum is kid-friendly and interacts with the public,” Frithiof said. “Not every museum does that.”
Dinosaur Envy
While they may never discover another complete fossil, Frithiof and Pham continue to find interesting items during their trips.
“They say a bad day of fossil digging is better than a good day at work,” Pham said. “You can spend nine hours in the hot sun and not find anything. That drive to find that piece of fossil that’s hidden from the world… you realize how insignificant and small you are in the greater scheme of life. How humbling is that?”
There is some controversy in the dinosaur community about hobby hunters. Many paleontologists believe that finding fossils should be left to professionals who approach the task with scientific care, rather than hobbyists who might only care about money or the thrill. Frithiof has faced these criticisms for years.
“I’d love to see academics work with private fossil hunters,” Frithiof said. “Working as a team is always better. So much more could be uncovered.”
According to Frithiof, there are millions of acres in the Western United States concealing an immeasurable number of fossils. Rock formation and shifting tectonic plates slowly bring fossils to the surface, where rain erodes sediment. Suddenly, there’s a fossil ready to discover. Frithiof says it’s a race against time. If fossils aren’t collected and studied, they’ll be gone.
“They can be under the ground for years and years, but once they’re exposed to the elements, they disintegrate quickly,” Frithiof said. “Between rain, freezes and thaws — if you’re lucky, they last one year exposed.”
Easton the Nodosaur
To bridge the divide between private collections and scientific knowledge, Pham hopes more hobbyists will donate their important fossils.
“Things that will contribute to science should be donated,” Pham said. “That’s how I’ve tried to live my life since I’ve been fortunate to obtain some of these amazing specimens.”
The Smithsonian recently finished conserving the Nodosaur fossil that Pham donated, and it’s now a part of their permanent non-display research collection.
“It will be kept safe for decades to come,” said Carrano, the curator of dinosauria at the Smithsonian. “I’m excited to study it and learn more about these uncommon animals.”
Someday, the fossil will have a scientific name. But a perk of donating a fossil to the Smithsonian is the opportunity to give it a nickname. That’s how Pham got the chance to name the dinosaur after his son, Easton.
Pham and his wife are expecting the birth of their daughter any day. There probably won’t be a dinosaur named after her in the Smithsonian, though. Pham got the chance to donate a second rare fossil to the museum last year. Another Frithiof fossil, this one had been on display at the Brazos Valley museum for 16 years. Pham named it “Ronny” in honor of his friend. Now that he’s donated two rare fossils to the Smithsonian, he feels he’s used up all his luck.
“Donating to the Smithsonian is a once-in-a-lifetime chance, and I got two opportunities to do it,” Pham said. “I don’t know if it comes in threes.”
At the Brazos Valley museum, the Nodosaur replica is known as Easton, too. Seeing people enjoy the rare piece of natural history makes a happy dad even happier.
“Every time I see it or see people post about it, it makes me happy that the community of Bryan-College Station can appreciate it,” Pham said.
“I now realize that something of that significance sitting in my living room — though it would be appreciated by me and my family — would be lost to the world.”
The epic three-night program “Walking with Dinosaurs” airs June 16-18 from 7-9 p.m. each night on KAMU-TV or our online livestream. Check out the series trailer and get ready to travel back to the time of the dinosaurs.
