The dinosaur was such an instant hit with the public that in 1932 the Sinclair companies registered the apatosaurus (brontosaurus) as a trademark. By now P. G. Alen, creator of life-like papier-mâché animals for motion pictures, was building a gigantic exhibit for the Century of Progress Exposition in Chicago. The authenticity of this display led to the first company-sponsored geological materials for schools, libraries and home study. These have been distributed by hundreds of thousands. To give academic stature to its promotions, Sinclair financed for several years the dinosaur-fossil search expeditions of Dr. Barnum Brown, then curator of fossil reptiles at the American Museum of Natural History. On Doctor Brown's death in January, 1963, Sinclair turned for scientific assistance to Dr. John H. Ostrom of Yale University's Peabody Museum of Natural History. He completed Doctor Brown's work as consultant on the Paleontology exhibit at New York World's Fair in 1964.

Perhaps the Sinclair Refining Company's most successful single promotion was the issuance in 1935 of a dinosaur stamp album which could be filled only with colored dinosaur stamps issued one at a time weekly at service stations. The first printing of albums was distributed through dealers within 48 hours after a single network radio broadcast of the offer. The final totals were 4 million albums and 48 million stamps. During this period, company sales increased substantially.

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