The data consist of several spreadsheets detailing the temporal and geographical distributions of testudinates (turtles, terrapins and tortoises) through time. Occurrence data includes information on taxonomy, geographical distribution and geological age and is limited to Mesozoic-Paleogene taxa. These data were compiled from the published literature on fossil turtles for NERC Standard Grant NE/J020613/1. These data form the basis for understanding the role of changing global climates and geography on testudinate diversity and distribution though time, with the aim of providing historical baseline data for modern conservation biology. The data represent a summary over 150 years of published research on fossil turtles and their relatives and were compiled over a period of 3.5 years during the tenure of a grant. To date they have provided the data used in analyses presented by Nicholson et al. (2015, 2016) and Waterson et al. (2016). Details of the analyses and the results obtained can be found in these papers.