George C. Page, La Brea Tar Pits

George C. Page was an American entrepreneur, real-estate developer, and philanthropist whose name became permanently associated with one of the most famous paleontological sites in the world, the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles. Born in Fremont, Nebraska, in 1901, Page came from modest beginnings and moved to California as a teenager.

Over the course of his career he built a successful business empire through citrus packing, shipping, industrial development, and real-estate ventures. Despite his financial success, he remained deeply interested in education, science, and public institutions. His charitable contributions supported hospitals, universities, youth programs, and cultural organizations throughout Southern California, but his most enduring legacy is unquestionably the museum he financed at the La Brea Tar Pits.

Page’s fascination with the tar pits began shortly after he arrived in California. As a young man he visited the site hoping to see the famous Ice Age fossils he had heard about. Instead, he learned that most of the spectacular fossil specimens recovered from Rancho La Brea were housed several miles away at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.

The experience stayed with him for decades. He believed that visitors should be able to see the fossils where they were actually discovered and that the scientific story of the tar pits deserved its own dedicated museum. After achieving considerable wealth, he offered to finance the construction of such a facility,

transforming a long-held personal dream into reality. Construction of the George C. Page Museum of La Brea Discoveries began in 1975 and the museum opened to the public in 1977. Designed by architects Frank Thornton and Willis Fagan, the building was intentionally integrated into the landscape of Hancock Park rather than dominating it.

Much of the structure was built partially below ground level, with grass-covered berms forming much of its exterior. This unusual design helped preserve the appearance of the park while creating a museum that seemed to emerge naturally from the fossil-rich landscape. The museum quickly became a landmark,

not only because of its exhibits but also because it was built directly atop one of the world’s richest fossil deposits. The La Brea Tar Pits themselves are extraordinary. Natural asphalt has seeped to the surface in the area for tens of thousands of years. Animals became trapped in the sticky deposits, and predators were often drawn to struggling prey,

resulting in an enormous accumulation of fossils. Since systematic excavations began in the early twentieth century, millions of specimens have been recovered, including saber-toothed cats, dire wolves, mammoths, mastodons, giant ground sloths, horses, camels, birds, insects, plants, and countless microscopic remains. The exceptional preservation provided by the asphalt has given scientists an unparalleled window into life in

has made the institution highly respected among both scientists and museum professionals. The museum’s collections are among the most important Ice Age fossil assemblages in existence. Tens of thousands of dire wolf specimens and thousands of saber-toothed cat remains have been recovered,

experience the wonder of prehistoric life in a setting directly connected to the fossils beneath their feet. More than four decades after the museum opened, it remains one of the world’s premier paleontological destinations and a lasting monument to Page’s belief that science should be accessible, engaging, and closely connected to the places where discoveries are made.