If you’ve stared into the massive jaws of Sue the dinosaur at the Field Museum, you have Sue Hendrickson to thank for digging her up!

Sue Hendrickson was born in Chicago but grew up in Munster, Indiana. Hendrickson developed an appreciation for paleontological work in high school by volunteering on digs over her summer breaks. In addition she spent a significant portion of her time salvage diving in shipwrecks and mining amber in the Dominican mountains. After joining a team of paleontologists in the mid 1980s, Hendrickson accompanied the team to the Black Hills Institute in South Dakota. It was there that Hendrickson would discover the ancient remains of the tyrannosaurus rex which was eventually named Sue, after herself. Sue is the largest, most complete, and best preserved T. rex specimen ever found. But this would not be the only major discovery for Hendrickson. She went on to join a team of marine archaeologists that ended up discovering the royal quarters of Cleopatra and Napoleon Bonaparte’s lost fleet from the Battle of the Nile.

Learn more:
Sue the T. rex’s profile from the Field Museum
Sue Hendrickson’s bio