For more than 60 years, the sprawling Kennecott mining camp sat largely abandoned on the mountainous slopes of Ala
ska’s Wrangle-St. Elias National Park, its mammoth wood structures creaking in disrepair and its machinery rusting and immoveable. There was a time in the early 20th century when thousands of miners called this remote town home, drawn by a mother lode of copper and very attractive wages. However by 1938, the Kennecott Copper Company had depleted the copper reserves and closed the mine. It wasn’t until 1998 that the entire site was taken over by the National Park Service. By this time, decay and corrosion had set in and the historic site required extensive repairs and renovations in order to preserve its history.
One of the most recent preservation projects at Kennecott involved protecting the stacks on the old power plant from rust and corrosion, which was quite a challenge considering that the plant is at an elevation of 2,000 feet, surrounded by mountains, and is located just a short distance from the Kennecott Glacier.
Read the story of how the National Park Service used HinderRUST to preserve one of the main features at Kennecott here.