Kennicott Mines ~ a ghost town with life

August 1900, a couple of prospectors, spotted a green patch of hillside that looked like it would be good feeding for their pack horses. Kennicott MinesThe green turned out to be part of a mountain of copper ore. Kennicott Glacier in the valley below the mine was named after Robert Kennicott, a naturalist who explored in Alaska in the mid-1800s is where the mines got their name from. A mistake was apparently made on some paperwork when the Kennecott Mining Company was formed, forever spelling it with an “e”.

5 mines made up The Kennicott Mines.
5 mines made up The Kennicott Mines.

Go figure, spelling had its issues way back then 🙂

Kennecott had five mines: Bonanza, Jumbo, Mother Lode, Erie and Glacier – open pit mining so it only happened in summer.  The mine and much of the surrounding area became a National Historic Landmark in 1986 and a part of the National Park Service in 1998.

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