Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Interpretive Concept Plan

September 2011

Prepared for the National Park Service 

by Ron Thomson, Compass
The Kennecott town and mines is an 

extraordinary relic from America’s past. 

The impressive structures and artifacts 

that remain represent an ambitious 

time of exploration, discovery, and 

technological innovation. 

They tell stories of westward expansion, 

World War I politics and economy, the 

lives of men, women, and children who 

lived there, and the rise of a multinational 

corporation. 

Each link in the historical chain 

connects to another until we realize that 

this remote, Alaska mining venture, situated in a 

spectacular and challenging natural environment, 

was intricately connected to the world around it.

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve website

Ore car train in Kennecott 1920 - Bleakley Coll.

Cover Painting: Kennicott Copper Mine Tipple - 1976 - by 

Dot Bardarson
Participants 51

Review Team 53

Appendix 1

Secretary’s Standards 54

Appendix 2

Planning Documents 55

Appendix 3

Tangibles/Intangibles 56

Appendix 4

A Note on the Name 57

Interpretive Concept Summary 1

Planning Background 6

Foundation 10

Landmark Significance 11

Interpretive Themes 12

Audiences 16

Audience Experiences 18

Design Criteria 20

Landmark in 2011 22

Issues 26

Actions 29

Introduction 30

Recommended Actions 31

Visiting Options 31

Sense of Arrival 32

On-site Orientation 33

Guide Visitors 33

Central Focus 36

Interpret Structures 37

Implementation Plan 47

Exhibit Phase 47

Table of Contents
Illustrated Map of Mill Town NPS - Catie Bursch

Kennecott Mill Town
National Park Service 1

Kennecott was born, died, and reborn. 

Multiple contradictions exist there, 

side by side. It is a product of nature 

and a construct of human ambition. 

Massive buildings are swallowed by the 

panorama of Alaska’s glacial wilderness. 

Kennecott is abandoned yet occupied. 

Public and private. Ruins coexist with 

restorations. The global reach of the 

corporation stands in marked contrast to 

the isolation of the setting. Kennecott is 

Alaskan, ethnic, and American history. 

Workplace blends with marketplace and 

living space. Manager lived near miner. 

Capitalism showed both its paternalistic 

and benevolent faces. Ingenuity and 

innovation flourished in service to an 

exhaustible supply of natural resources. 

Boom yielded to bust.

As it exists today, and as it will be 

interpreted, Kennecott Mines National 

Historic Landmark (NHL) lies within 

a small but viable community, located 

in an isolated mountain wilderness. 

The landmark has a storied global 

corporate history, engaging personal 

narratives of residents and workers, and 

a sizable collection of mostly historic 

structures and artifacts. It also is the 

place where many visitors experience 

the environment of Wrangell-St. Elias 

National Park and Preserve (WRST), 

walk on its glaciers, and learn about 

its dynamic natural history. Given the 

presence of dozens of buildings and 

thousands of objects, Kennecott is a 

distinctive, full-scale primer, a walkthrough, three-dimensional exhibit of 

history and historic preservation. 

It is precisely this distinctive blend of 

realities that attracts the attention of not a 

single-minded audience, but rather several 

types of visitors with differing interests 

and needs. Kennecott presents an array of 

possibilities that fuels sometimes divergent 

management goals. A central interpretive 

message—change—helps unify diverse 

perspectives, resources, and values. 

Persistent succession of natural processes 

entwined with layers of human history 

make Kennecott NHL one of America’s 

treasures.

The Planning Process

In 2011, the National Park Service 

(NPS), along with the local community, 

engaged in an ongoing planning effort to 

Interpretive Concept Summary

Leaching Plant - NPS Carol Harding
2 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

The Planning Process

Summary of Participant 

Discussions 

The three days of discussion produced 

valuable ideas for an interpretive 

approach that will form the foundation 

for specific projects spanning the next 

decade. 

Interpretive media and programs for the 

national historic landmark will . . . 

Visiting Options

Provide clear visiting options for a variety 

of audiences, that allow the widest 

possible access to the site, emphasize selfdiscovery, and encourage exploration. 

Orientation efforts will include the 

Internet, assisted with on-going reviews 

and updates of the WRST website. 

Proactive communication with tourism 

and interpretive partners will identify and 

look for strategies to provide information 

at venues along the approaches to 

Kennecott (including air traffic), in 

McCarthy, and finally in Kennecott. 

Sense of Arrival

Use the overlook and kiosk at the 

entrance to Kennecott NHL to provide 

a sense of arrival, create a portal that 

signals entrée into a special place of 

national significance, and use this 

arrival experience to welcome visitors, 

identify buildings that will be stabilized 

or rehabilitated, and those that will not 

receive any attention at all. The long-term 

goal is to protect the historic integrity 

of the town and its setting so that future 

generations also will be able to explore 

Kennecott.

This concept plan is part of that process, 

and is presented as a guide for current 

and future efforts. The conclusions 

summarized below capture the essence 

of a three-day workshop designed to:

•	 Gather input on the types of 

interpretive techniques and exhibits 

that will best communicate park 

themes and facilitate identified 

audience experiences.

•	 Identify what and where Kennecott’s 

stories will be told, and

•	 Develop a media plan that identifies 

interpretive techniques for both the 

buildings and the Kennecott Mines 

NHL setting. 

Workshop attendees included 13 Alaska 

NPS regional specialists and WRST staff, 

seven WRST partner organizations, local 

and regional subject matter experts, and 

eight members of the local community, 

for a total of 28 participants. 

Planning workshop - Jeremy Pataky

Ron Simpson at planning workshop - NPS Carol Harding
National Park Service 3

Summary of Participant Discussions

the off-season. Exhibits must withstand 

uncontrolled environment for eight 

months a year. In order to preserve the 

character of the store, historic features 

will be respected.

Exterior Interpretation

Limit exterior signs in the town, except 

for a few specific building identification 

signs that have a documented history 

and that are recommended in the 

landmark’s Sign Guidelines (Train 

Depot, Post Office, General Store, Wells 

Fargo, and fire hose building). 

As far as possible, exterior signs should 

conform to what was used during 

the period of significance. Instead 

of signs, interpretation will rely on 

a mix of printed materials, guided 

tours, electronic media, and interior 

interpretive panels to identify and 

interpret town buildings. The printed 

guides will be based on a review and 

update of existing materials. Guided 

tours will be developed in discussion 

with interpretive partners. Selected 

electronic media will be developed 

from experiments with emerging 

technologies, assessed for their ability 

to enhance the sense of discovery and 

reduce audio and visual intrusions 

associated with other media. 

introduce the landmark’s primary stories, 

encourage exploration and curiosity, and 

offer logistical and safety information. 

For those who want more information 

and direction, supplement the overlook 

experience with staff and exhibits inside 

the Blackburn School and outside on 

the school’s deck. Use the interior to 

answer questions about the backcountry, 

front country trails, and the landmark. 

Have maps and safety information 

available and provide space for Alaska 

Geographic sales. When possible, use 

staff outside the building to enhance the 

adjacent overlook experience and greet 

visitors arriving by shuttle bus. Consider 

the school as a base of operations for a 

winter caretaker. 

Central Exhibit

Provide a central exhibit area in the 

General Store. In an attempt to heighten 

self-discovery and keep interpretive 

intrusions to a minimum in the town 

itself, these central exhibits will offer the 

best opportunity to fully develop the 

landmark’s primary stories. In the store 

setting, given the need for durability and 

low maintenance, the full range of exhibit 

techniques can be used including handson and interactive media—the space is 

heated during the season and secured in 

Kennecott sign - NPS photo Carol Harding

On a very limited basis, consider 

some exterior interpretive signage, for 

example, at the now removed Assay 

building and at the Kennecott Cemetery.
4 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Summary of Participant Discussions

Corporate Resource Center

Enhance the sense of discovery by 

developing the General Manager’s Office 

as a resource center focused on the 

corporation. This is an under interpreted 

theme that would benefit from additional 

attention. 

Provide access to historic and 

interpretive documents about Kennecott 

Copper Corporation, biographical 

information on corporate leaders, 

reproductions of mining maps, 

photos, surveys, engineering reports, 

employment records, and drawings 

of buildings and machinery. Purchase 

replica office furniture, tables, chairs, 

bookcases, and map storage drawers 

that reflect the historic period and 

provide an inviting space to look through 

materials. Create a place where visitors 

can comfortably pause and reflect on 

Kennecott Copper Company’s role in 

national and world history, Alaskan and 

regional development, and daily life at 

Kennecott.

As in the General Store, original 

furnishings such as the drafting table and 

storage drawers that were removed from 

the building before rehabilitation should 

be restored and reinstalled. 

Interior Interpretation: Interior Panels

Use a family of interior interpretive panels 

to connect landmark buildings to historic 

use and primary stories. This family of 

panels will expand on those that already 

exist (in the Cottage and Power Plant, 

for example). They may, however, also 

include experiments with larger formats 

that use historic photos on fabric or scrim 

to help visitors visualize building interiors, 

activity, and people. This family of 

panels needs to be more fully developed, 

described, and added to the landmark’s 

Sign Guidelines as an addendum. 

Interior Interpretation: 3-D Exhibits

Workshop participants generally 

recommended against adding 

furnishings, objects, and recreated room 

or museum-like vignettes, although 

scale models, particularly of features 

that are not accessible (mine tunnels, 

for example), might be considered. This 

approach to interior interpretation means 

that furnishings plans are not necessary. 

If possible, original furnishings, such 

as the stand-up accounting desk in the 

General Store, should be retained, in the 

buildings where they were used.

Original stove – NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 5

Summary of Participant Discussions

Interpret the trail system with printed 

materials, interior panels, guided tours, 

or emerging technologies, and ensure 

that there are spaces for reflection and 

contemplation. 

Develop an addendum to the Sign 

Guidelines that defines trailheads, where 

they should be located, and how they 

should look. 

Partnerships

Strengthen current partnerships 

with local stakeholders, including 

the McCarthy-Kennicott Historical 

Museum, the Wrangell Mountains 

Center, and those who operate guide and 

shuttle services, to assist with distribution 

of orientation and interpretive materials. 

In particular, discuss partnering with 

the Museum to create an additional 

orientation station and an appropriate 

venue for displaying original artifacts. 

Continue discussions that will use the 

New School and West Bunkhouse as an 

education center for both partner and 

NPS educational audiences with the clear 

understanding that any use of historic 

buildings must respect historic fabric. 

Explore and develop potential 

partnerships with Native communities 

and educational organizations within the 

Copper River Valley.

At appropriate times, the building can 

also be a venue for small group gatherings 

related to Kennecott and local area 

themes, such as discussions and literature 

readings.

Guided Tours

Discuss the future of guided tours in the 

town, specifically those that enter the 

mill. Ensure that this critical portion of 

the story, linked directly to the national 

significance of the site, is interpreted to 

NPS interpretive standards. 

Trails

Review and revise the trails through 

town. Consider whether trail routes 

access locations linked to all aspects of 

the primary themes. For example, are the 

mines, trams, and miners well served by 

existing trails? Provide access to features 

like the Wagon Road and Kennecott 

Cemetery. Provide more loop rather 

than one-way trails. Consider the use of 

boardwalks to open more of the town to 

exploration. 

Provide subtle direction to and along the 

new trail system perhaps by using historic 

equipment to assist with wayfinding—

maybe a gear positioned to point the way, 

or an in-ground “compass rose” 

at a trailhead or trail intersection. 

Root Glacier Trail – NPS photo Carol Harding
6 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

In the summer of 1900, prospectors 

Clarence Warner and “Tarantula” Jack 

Smith were exploring the east edge of the 

Kennicott Glacier. As they drew closer 

to the limestone-greenstone contact, 

they were amazed by the magnificent 

green cliffs of exposed copper. Samples 

from their discovery, the “Bonanza Mine 

Outcrop,” revealed up to 70% pure 

chalcocite, one of the richest copper 

deposits ever found.

Mining engineer Stephen Birch, in Alaska 

to look for investment opportunities for 

the wealthy Havemeyer family, began 

buying up shares of the Bonanza claim. 

Without a way to transport the copper to 

market, however, the claim was worthless. 

Some said building a railroad from the 

coast, across mountains, powerful rivers, 

and moving glaciers would be impossible. 

When others offered a glimmer of hope, 

the Havemeyers collaborated with J.P. 

Morgan and the Guggenheim family, 

forming the Alaska Syndicate, to build a 

railroad and develop the mines. 

In the fall of 1907, the Alaska Syndicate 

hired Michael J. Heney, builder of the 

White Pass & Yukon Railroad. 

Background

Future site of Kennicott - Bleakley Coll.
National Park Service 7

Background

Reaping profits fueled by America’s high 

demand for copper, Kennecott Copper 

Corporation invested in mines in Chile 

and the lower forty-eight. By the time 

the Kennecott mines closed in 1938, 

the corporation had grown into one of 

the largest minerals companies in the 

world, thanks to the perseverance and 

ingenuity of its founders, investors, and 

workers.

Legislation and Designations

Kennecott Mines National Historic 

Landmark has layers of designations. 

No single piece of legislation or solitary 

political act captures its administrative 

pedigree. Instead, facets are contained in 

the following:

National Register of Historic Places

The Kennecott Mines were listed 

on the National Register of Historic 

Places on July 12, 1978. See Appendix 

1 for a summary of the Secretary of the 

Interior’s standards for the treatment of 

historic properties like Kennecott. 

National Landmark Designation

Designated a national historic landmark 

(NHL) on June 23, 1986, Kennecott’s 

significance is described as “a vestige of an 

early 20th-century copper mining camp.” 

For the next four years his crews worked 

relentlessly, building rail bed and bridges 

through difficult terrain at temperatures 

down to 40 degrees below zero. At 

the same time, Stephen Birch was in 

Kennecott developing the mining claims. 

By hauling an entire steamship, piece by 

piece, over the mountains from Valdez to 

be reassembled on the Copper River, he 

brought equipment in by dog sled, horse, 

and steamship to begin mining ore even 

before the railroad was finished. The first 

train left Kennecott in 1911, just ten days 

after the railroad was completed, filled 

with $250,000 worth of copper.

Kennecott was a place of long hours and 

hard, dangerous work. At the height of 

operation, about 600 men worked in the 

mines and town. Paying salaries higher 

than those found in the lower forty-eight, 

Kennecott attracted men willing to live and 

work in this remote Alaskan mining camp. 

Mill workers and miners came to 

Kennecott only to work, living in 

bunkhouses with little time off, often 

sending money home to their families 

around the world. Despite the dangers 

and grueling work, the Kennecott 

workers mined and concentrated at least 

$200 million worth of ore.

Power Plant window - NPS photo Carol Harding

“Kennecott represents the mining 

techniques of the era. The mines 

here were among the nation’s largest 

and contained the last of the great 

high-grade copper ore deposits of 

the American West. The world’s first 

ammonia-leaching plant for extracting 

concentrations of ore from low-grade 

ores was designed and first successfully 

used on a commercial scale here.”
8 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Background

In June of 1998, the National Park 

Service purchased land, buildings, 

mineral rights, and holdings associated 

with the Kennecott Mines and assumed 

a partnership role in the stewardship of 

the site.

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and 

Preserve (WRST)

The Alaska National Interest Lands 

Conservation Act (ANILCA) of 

December 2, 1980, created WrangellSt. Elias National Park and Preserve, 

including designation of federal lands 

within the boundary of the national 

historic landmark as a national preserve. 

World Heritage Designation 

In 1979 (extended in 1992 & 1994), 

UNESCO’s World Heritage Convention 

inscribed the Kluane/Wrangell-St. 

Elias/Glacier Bay/Tatshenshini-Alsek 

national parks and protected areas 

along the boundary of Canada and the 

United States on its World Heritage 

List. Lands of the NHL are within 

this World Heritage designation. The 

inscription contains no specific mention 

of Kennecott Mines.

Contrary to often-cited references, 

the park, as of 2011, is not listed as an 

International Biosphere Reserve. 

NPS World Heritage Site Map
National Park Service 9

Background

Parkwide Planning Statements 

Kennecott is specifically mentioned 

in the 2009 Foundation Statement for 

WRST under “Cultural Heritage.” That 

section contains the following language.

“Preserved within Wrangell-St. 

Elias National Park and Preserve is 

abundant evidence of more than 3,000 

years of cultural and technological 

development. This long history reveals 

a range of human adaptations to 

changing climates, environments, and 

economic circumstances.” 

Kennecott Mines NHL is listed under 

“Fundamental Resources and Values.”

“Mining operations at Kennecott 

occurred between 1901-1938. During 

this period the Kennecott copper 

mines were among the nation’s richest, 

containing the last of the great highgrade copper ore deposits in the 

American West.”

The ‘Living Cultures” section also is 

relevant to Kennecott.

“Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and 

Preserve is an inhabited area where 

local communities and traditional 

human activities remain integrated 

with the wilderness setting.”

Other WRST/Kennecott Planning 

Documents

See Appendix 2 for a list of current 

planning documents. 
10 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Part 1

THE FOUNDATION
National Park Service 11

The mines, mill, associated buildings, 

surviving equipment, and surrounding 

natural setting still evoke the 

appearance of Kennecott when it 

operated in the early 20th century.

It contributed to the national debate 

over natural resource use policies. 

“During the two decades preceding 

and those following World War I, 

when the United States produced 

more than half the world’s copper, 

the mines at Kennecott, Alaska, 

were among the nation’s largest and 

contained the last of the great high 

grade copper ore deposits in the 

American West . . .”

“The Kennecott Copper Corporation 

(backed by the Guggenheims) was 

able to reorient into an international 

conglomerate owning long-term low 

grade ore mines. By designing the 

world’s first ammonia-leaching plant 

at the Kennecott site, the corporation 

was able to extract higher mineral 

values from the low-grade ores which 

were discarded, ensuring further 

profits.”

Cordova to Kennecott, Alaska: Historic 

American Engineering Record Recording 

Project, Sandra McDermott Faulkner

Landmark Historical 

Significance

Significance statements focus on the 

facts that elevate the landmark to 

national significance. How do its historic 

resources compare with other similar 

resources? Why is Kennecott’s history 

worthy of national recognition and 

preservation?

Kennecott mining history is nationally 

significant because . . . 

The mines here were among the 

nation’s largest and contained the last 

of the great high-grade copper ore 

deposits of the American West. 

It represents the mining techniques of 

the era and contributed to the evolution 

of mining technology including the 

design and use, on a commercial scale, 

of the world’s first ammonia-leaching 

plant for extracting concentrations of 

ore from low-grade ores. 

Facing Page: Kennecott from Glacier 3 c. 1930 - Kenn. 

Kids Coll.

Jumbo Mine - NPS photo Carol Harding
12 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

The significance of the exploration, 

discovery, development, process, and 

historical impact of the Kennecott 

mining enterprise.

Layers of history that illustrate the 

evolution of environmental policy in 

the U.S., attitudes on the extraction 

of natural resources, and community 

creation particularly in isolated 

settings. 

Improvements to mining technologies 

and innovations that allowed for 

greater recovery of ore. 

Natural succession of plant life; 

the dynamic natural processes of 

glaciation, hydrology, erosion, and 

deposition; and high energy events 

such as floods.

Climate change. 

Among the several stories that this theme 

embraces, perhaps the most visible are 

the change in the glaciers of WrangellSt. Elias and the boom and bust cycles 

associated with global economies and 

extractive industries. 

The dynamic aspects of Kennecott 

provide context to any specific natural 

or cultural moments in time. What may 

appear fixed and durable, in reality, could 

be fleeting and transient. 

Primary Themes

The thematic framework proposed for 

the landmark includes an overarching 

idea and three themes that flow from 

that idea. Topics, theme statements, and 

content paragraphs provide details for 

each theme. 

This framework is a blend of input 

from participants at the June 2011 

workshop attended by NPS staff and a 

variety of community and Kennecott 

stakeholders. (See Appendix 3 for a list of 

tangible resources and intangible stories 

developed at the workshop).

Overarching Theme 

Topic: Change

Theme Statement:

Changes at Kennecott National 

Historic Landmark have happened in 

substantial and subtle ways, providing 

a variety of lessons for contemporary 

society. 

This theme introduces several subjects, 

in order of importance, that can be the 

focus of interpretive media.

Ranger talk on moraine - NPS photo
National Park Service 13

Primary Themes

over visitors, they are, in turn, dwarfed 

by the expansiveness of their natural 

surroundings. Nature is an undeniable 

force in the Kennecott story, from the 

rugged wilderness to the mineral wealth 

encapsulated within the mountains. 

Yet human ingenuity, hard work, and 

perseverance challenged isolation, and 

the railroad (the Copper River and 

Northwestern Railway) emerged as the 

critical connection between the mines/

mill and out-of-valley markets and sources 

of supply. 

Examples of program or exhibit topics 

that fit within this theme:

Natural environment

Geology

Copper ore quality and limits to supply

Creative solutions to living/working at 

Kennecott

Challenges of living/working at 

Kennecott

Transportation links

Communication links

Supplying Kennecott

Copper markets

Environmental/resource extraction 

policy evolution

Primary Themes

Topic: Kennicott Valley and Kennecott 

Mines

Theme Statement:

The copper rich but isolated Kennicott 

Valley’s spectacular glacial landscapes 

dwarf the human developments within. 

This theme introduces several subjects 

that can be the focus of interpretive 

media.

Kennecott illustrates the high degree 

of perseverance and ingenuity required 

to establish, sustain, and profit from 

commerce between the Kennecott 

mines/mill and essential but distant 

markets. 

The Kennicott Valley landscape 

continues to overshadow and directly 

affect human developments within it.

(See Appendix 4 for a discussion of 

the difference between Kennicott and 

Kennecott.)

Interpretation of this theme provides 

opportunities to explore how humans and 

nature have interacted in the Kennicott 

Valley, how the corporation and its 

employees not only survived the Alaskan 

wilderness but profited from it. While the 

red and white buildings of the town tower 

Kennecott from Glacier c. 1930 – Kenn. Kids Coll.
14 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Primary Themes

Beyond the national significance of the 

landmark, Kennecott also illustrates 

the evolution of enterprise in the post1938 era when the copper rich veins 

approached exhaustion and another 

generation of entrepreneurs moved into 

town.

Examples of program or exhibit topics 

that fit within this theme:

Corporate history

Corporate officials and financiers

Global demand for copper/copper 

markets

Corporate growth and profits

Progressive politics

Mines and mining techniques

Ore processing

Processing equipment

Equipment maintenance

Buildings and physical plant

Mines, trams, trails, and roads

Worker skills

Safety/danger

Innovation

Boom and bust cycle

Post corporate businesses

Topic: Corporate Kennecott

Theme Statement

The corporations that built and operated 

Kennecott mines and mill provide a case 

study in the response to political and 

economic conditions, including market 

demand for natural resources and 

management of extractive industries.

This theme has several facets that directly 

parallel the significance of the national 

historic landmark. 

The corporation’s responsibility for 

operating the mines/mill as it responded 

to global demand for copper and 

generated substantial wealth. 

The controversial role of GuggenheimMorgan action over conservation of 

natural resources and the power of 

corporate trusts.

The extraction and processing 

techniques used at the mines/mill.

The innovations that made Kennecott 

a profitable leader in copper extraction 

and processing (ammonia-leaching in 

particular) despite the harsh conditions 

of the Kennicott Valley.

The boom and bust nature of Kennecott.

Private business in Kennecott - NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 15

Primary Themes

contributed to the distinctive profile 

of Kennecott’s evolving community 

structure and human society. And, in the 

midst of corporate Kennecott, miners, 

mill workers, managers and their families 

invented their personal definition of 

home. After the mines closed, Kennecott 

was important to the few who chose to 

live a life of isolation and innovation. 

Today, a new community rises, centered 

on the diverse historic and natural values 

of the place and economically supported 

by National Park Service and tourism 

activities.

Examples of program or exhibit topics 

that fit within this theme:

Native peoples

Local company officials and families

Corporate employees, miners, 

millworkers, etc.

Labor relations

Housing

Daily life, recreation, education, etc.

Post-corporation residents

Topic: Kennecott Communities

Theme Statement

Corporate Kennecott depended upon 

hundreds of workers and their families, 

diverse populations of temporary and 

long-term residents who founded and 

sustained the distinctive communities 

that occupied and still survive in the 

Kennicott Valley. 

This theme is as diverse as Kennecott’s 

workers and residents. It gives voice to 

stories otherwise dominated by machines 

and chemistry. It helps personalize 

engineering reports, global markets, 

profits, and losses. It adds the sounds of 

mealtime and playtime to the deafening 

din of tons of ore being shaken to bits 

and steam engines hissing with pentup energy. It recognizes that before the 

mines, Native peoples called Alaska 

home—Natives significantly participated 

in the early history, and should not be 

seen as simply a part of the “dead” past, 

but instead viewed as a living and vibrant 

part of the present. Ethnic groups, class 

differences, and gender imbalance all 

Japanese cook at the Jumbo Mine - courtesy 

Cordova Museum

Chris & Inger 

Jensen at skating 

rink - Tjosevig 

Coll. via D. 

Anderson
16 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Primary Themes

Audiences

In order to design the most effective 

interpretive programming and employ 

the most effective interpretive techniques, 

it is critical to identify intended 

audiences, both existing audiences who 

actively use site interpretive programs 

AND potential audiences that wellplanned interpretation might encourage. 

“Individuals understand places 

differently depending on how they 

have experienced them, and this 

experience in turn is shaped by their 

social characteristics such as age, 

gender, race, class, and physical 

condition.” 

David Glassberg in Sense of History: 

The Place of the Past in American Life

Existing Audiences

Annual visitation at the landmark has had 

up to 10,000 visitors during a very short 

season (Memorial Day weekend to Labor 

Day weekend). 

The University of Alaska Fairbanks 

conducted a scientific study of Kennecott 

on-site visitation in 2004. They divided 

visitors into the following categories: 

Outdoor Enthusiast, Park Experience, 

Parkwide Themes

In addition to the landmark’s themes, the 

current WRST Foundation Statement 

includes two themes related to the 

landmark’s human history.

Today, we continue a long history 

of humans who for thousands of 

years have found refuge, sustenance, 

challenge, and inspiration in WrangellSt. Elias National Park and Preserve.

Since prehistoric times, the WrangellSt. Elias region has been home to 

many peoples, ranging from Ahtna 

and Upper Tanana, Eyak, and Tlingit 

speakers to Euro-American settlers; 

each has developed and continues to 

develop different livelihood strategies 

based on their unique relationship with 

the area’s rich diversity of resources.

Above: Three generations of Billums-Candy Waugaman 

Collection
National Park Service 17

Audiences

Virtual Visitors

Increasingly, visitors learn about the 

landmark from the Internet and the 

park’s website. 

School Groups

Although it is difficult for school groups 

to travel to Kennecott, several landmark 

stories could dovetail with curricular 

standards. 

Underserved Populations

Less than 20% of the landmark’s visitors 

live outside the United States. Over 

95% are white. Historically, however, 

Kennecott had a large population of 

History Buff, General Visitor, and Tourist 

Visitor. Each is described fully in the 

Visitor Preferences for Interpretation in 

the Kennecott Mill Town, Final Report 

(November 2005). 

The report also identified several 

important characteristics of landmark 

visitors. 

Most visitors stay on average two-three 

days and are interested in a variety of 

activities. 

Most arrive by vehicle and over 75% 

are visiting for the first time. 

Nearly half are 50 years old or 

older, and nearly 80% have at least a 

bachelor’s degree from college. 

Over 60% were traveling in family 

groups. 

Further structure stabilization, 

exploring the outside of more town 

buildings, the addition of signs 

and exhibits, and a film explaining 

historical significance all ranked fairly 

high on the “add to visitor experience” 

end of the scale. 

Targeted Audiences 

The landmark will continue to interpret 

to all who visit, but four audiences should 

receive more targeted attention. 

Top: Ranger with visitors - NPS photo Jamie Hart

Bottom: Visitors to Kennecott Mill Town - NPS Carol 

Harding
18 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Audiences

Audience Experiences

While primary themes focus on what 

audiences will learn as a result of 

interpretive programs and media, 

audience experiences explore what 

audiences will do. 

Interpretive Mission

The interpretive mission of Kennecott 

Mines National Historic Landmark is 

to provide visitors with opportunities 

to discover, understand, and 

appreciate the significance of the 

landmark, as well as foster a sense of 

stewardship. 

Interpretation will allow visitors 

to develop both intellectual and 

emotional connections with the 

natural, cultural, and industrial stories 

of the site through self-directed and 

guided experiences.

The following description of onsite audience experiences is based 

on workshop participant input and 

concurrent efforts to prepare an 

Operations Plan for the landmark. 

non-English speaking workers and the 

site has compelling stories that should 

appeal to African-Americans, Asian 

Pacific Americans, and Hispanics.

Alaska Natives

It is important that Ahtna feel welcome 

in their ancestral homelands. This could 

be accomplished by making available a 

permanent space for them in Kennecott, 

and establishing an annual Native 

performance.

 Accessibility and Audiences

The NPS is committed to developing a 

comprehensive strategy to provide people 

with disabilities equal access to programs, 

activities, services, and facilities. This is 

a particular challenge in an environment 

like Kennecott that is remote and 

attractive to the adventurous. Selfdiscovery has been a valued experience 

at Kennecott for many years. 

An accessibility evaluation was 

done in Kennecott, along with a full 

“Programmatic Accessibility” report 

produced by the Alaska Regional Office 

in April of 2005 for the Kennecott 

District. 

For additional guidance on making 

interpretive media accessible see: www.

nps.gov/hfc/accessibility/index.htm. 

Ranger interpreting the glacier - NPS photo Carol 

Harding
National Park Service 19

Audience Experiences

the special setting and characteristics 

of the landmark—a remote mining 

community in the midst of an 

enormous mountain wilderness.

Explain that Kennecott’s history 

continues, and that there is an existing 

community of merchants, residents, 

and NPS staff.

Offer a mix of both personal and nonpersonal (exhibits and publications, for 

example) media, allowing audiences to 

control the nature and extent of their 

participation in interpretation. Respect 

and acknowledge multiple ways of 

learning.

“We cannot create observers by 

saying ‘observe,’ but by giving them 

the power and the means for this 

observation and these means are 

procured through education of the 

senses.”

Maria Montessori 

Offer a central, interior space for in 

depth exploration of all Kennecott’s 

primary themes.

Experiential Opportunities

Interpretive programming for the 

landmark will:

Wayfinding and Orientation

Offer orientation information, in previsit and on-site venues, that describes 

the variety of experiences that 

Kennecott offers.

Explain the appearance of Kennecott, 

specifically that visitors will find 

public and private property, that 

building treatments vary from ruins to 

stabilization to restoration, that work 

continues on some structures while 

natural processes continue to affect 

them all, and that safety is a concern 

that all on-site visitors must consider. 

Provide opportunities for visitors to 

experience the landmark on their own 

terms either self-directed or guided. 

Provide better information about the 

shuttle system and how to get to the 

NHL.

Have a map of the NHL available with 

the buildings currently open to the 

public identified.

Offer information on backcountry use 

in the Kennicott Valley.

Theme Reinforcement

Offer a sense of arrival that reflects 

Kennecott Mines NHL- NPS photo Carol Harding

On the interior of other buildings 

(outside the central exhibit space), 

develop media that preserve a sense of 

abandonment and self-discovery, but 

that explain and interpret historic use. 

Only consider flexible media that 

can be easily changed or upgraded to 

reflect new conditions. 

Form partnerships that result in 

enhanced visitor experiences.
20 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Audience Experiences

Contemplation and Inspiration

Avoid the use of noisy, intrusive, nonpersonal media on the exterior of 

Kennecott buildings.

Consider the use of emerging 

technologies that have positive benefits 

like reduced signage. 

Ensure that there are spaces set aside 

for contemplation and reflection. 

Design Criteria

The overall success of interpretive media 

depends upon successful execution of 

design and design criteria. For Kennecott, 

with its environmental conditions, those 

criteria include . . . 

Exhibits that:

Incorporate the principles of Universal 

Design.

Conform to current NPS interpretive 

sign standards and Kennecott Sign 

Guidelines 2005.

Avoid diminishing the historic 

character of the mill town.

Are low tech, portable, and changeable 

to facilitate transportation to a remote 

site, and easily replaced and maintained.

Minimize visual clutter and are 

concentrated in building interiors. 

Mt. Blackburn with visitors in foreground - NPS photo 

Carol Harding
National Park Service 21

Design Criteria

Building exteriors and interiors 

that:

Are flexible with space for temporary 

exhibits (ex: mining drills).

Are sparsely furnished with existing, 

original furnishings or replicas. 

Allow objects to remain in “situ” and 

objects stored during renovation to be 

returned to historic locations.

Are largely without signs but perhaps 

with appropriate technologies 

that allow exploration of the town 

throughout the day.

Allow visitors to look into buildings 

that are closed to the public.

Do not appear “sanitized.”

Interpret a continuum of time 

periods (period of significance 1901-

1938; ghost town era 40s-80s; and 

contemporary times).

Are durable and resistant to an extreme 

climate and natural disasters such as 

earthquakes, floods, and avalanches.

Are available 24 hours a day.

Are not museum-like (no furnishings 

plans needed). WRST has limited 

curatorial space and buildings lack 

environmental control, security, and 

adequate staffing.

Are self-guided, encouraging selfdiscovery and personal exploration.

Provide a range of experiences yet feel 

authentic.

Accommodate a range of learning 

styles and present a hierarchy of 

interpretation and information.

“Historians saw that the mill town 

told an important story about the 

development of the North and 

represented a significant phase of 

industrial technology. Environmental 

groups sought to protect the glacieredge and mountainside trails of 

the National Historic Landmark, 

which had become the most-visited 

natural area of the park and were 

subject to change by additional sale 

of subdivision lots. Local residents 

considered the old industrial site 

their home, preservation of its 

character personally important, and 

its continued attractiveness to park 

visitors essential to the success of their 

businesses. Although worried about 

the maintenance costs of keeping 

Kennecott standing, the Park Service 

leadership concluded they had to take 

responsibility for what had become 

the main visitor destination in the 

largest national park in the country.”

Community & Copper in a Wild Land by Shawn 

Olson and Ben Shaine
22 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

School class. The documentary traces 

the history of copper in the Wrangell 

Mountains from early Ahtna through 

Kennecott years and beyond.

Kennecott Mill

An 18-minute documentary produced 

by the NPS in 2002. The documentary 

tells the story of how the mill was built 

and operated to bring copper out of the 

Alaska wilderness. This DVD currently 

is shown on a regular basis throughout 

the day at the Visitor Center.

Exhibits, Kiosks, Wayside Panels 

Kiosk #1 & Ranger Cabin (McCarthy 

Road Information Station)

The McCarthy Road Information 

Station (MRIS) includes a kiosk built 

in 1999, two outhouses and a ranger 

cabin built in 2002, and is located 

one mile west of the foot bridge. Due 

to poor location, this contact station 

is underused by the public and was 

closed for the 2011 season.

Two boxes with McCarthy Road 

Guides and WRST maps. 

Two bulletin boards (36” x 48”) with 

visitor information and two posters: 

Welcome to McCarthy

The Copper River and Northwestern 

Railway

The Landmark in 2011

Park staff provided the following 

summary and assessment of 

interpretation as of 2011.

Printed Materials

Hiking and Food Storage Map 

One-page handout with area hikes 

(NPS).

The Kennecott Story 

Eight-page, 8 1⁄2” x 11” handout, 

produced in 2005 and upgraded in 

2009, with map and history of the town 

(NPS).

Kennecott Walking Tour 

Eight-page, 8 1⁄2” x 11” handout 

identifies buildings and describes past 

use. Produced by McCarthy-Kennicott 

Historical Museum for sale in 2004. 

This handout is currently out of stock. 

The Museum is hoping to republish in 

2012.

The K’elt’aeni 

Yearly newspaper handout includes 

“McCarthy Road Guide” and “The End 

of the McCarthy Road” sections (NPS).

Audiovisual

Bonanza, The Story of Kennecott

A 90-minute documentary produced 

in 2006 by Kenny Lake Junior High 

Bonanza, Story of Kennecott DVD - NPS Carol Harding
National Park Service 23

The Park in 2011

Hiking and Camping in the Kennicott 

Valley (56 1⁄2” x 33 1⁄2”) 

Kennecott – A Work in Progress

(28 1⁄2” x 33 1⁄2”)

Ravenous for Copper (28 1⁄2” x 33 1⁄2”)

Kennecott Town

Map of buildings in town; safety 

message (32” x 33 1⁄2”)

One exhibit panel on the railing 

overlooking the view:

What is all that Rock? (24” x 36”) 

One brochure box with WRST maps.

Recreation Hall

Opened to the public in 2003.

One brochure box with WRST maps 

located outside the entrance at the 

head of the stairs.

Film screen (12’ x 12’) and projector; 

200 visitor capacity.

Two exhibit panels produced by NPS 

and Friends of Kennicott: 

The Recreation Hall: A Community 

Refuge (25 1⁄2” x 30”) 

Non-profit Assistance Helps Protect 

National Historic Landmark 

(25 1⁄2” x 30”)

One bulletin board (36” x 48”)

Poster with map of local area.

Kiosk #2

Installed in 2002 across the street from 

the Visitor Center.

Three posters:

Stabilization and Rehabilitation

Explore Kennecott

Park Significance

One bulletin board (36” x 36”)

Kiosk #3

Located 1⁄2 mile north of town on Root 

Glacier Trail and at the junction to 

Jumbo and Bonanza Mine’s trails.

Two boxes with completed 

Backcountry Itineraries, Backcountry 

Itinerary Forms, and Bear Safety 

Brochures.

Posters on Bear Safety and Don’t 

Pollute, Bury Your Poop.

Shuttle Stop

Finished in 2010, the stop contains 

an area for shuttle buses to drop off 

visitors and turn around, a sculptural 

metal sign that announces the 

landmark, and one kiosk/shelter with 

two benches and four exhibit panels.

Rec Hall interior- NPS photo Carol Harding
24 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

The Park in 2011

Concentration Mill

Concession tours only.

Three 2 1⁄2 -hour tours offered daily at 

9:30 am, 1:30 pm, & 3:30 pm, and on 

demand.

General Manager’s Office

The oldest structure in Kennecott, 

opened to the public in 2009.

Five historic photographs/hand 

colored, and one contemporary photo 

on the main level in three rooms. 

Photos need to be re- mounted to 

eliminate bubbles.

Kennecott, Alaska 1911 (14” x 73 1⁄2”)

Kennecott, Alaska 1917 (25” x 88”)

Kennecott, Alaska 1918 (17” x 49 1⁄2”)

Kennecott, Alaska 1924 (12 1⁄2” x 36”)

Kennecott, Alaska 1927 (12 1⁄2” x 36”)

Kennecott, Alaska 2007 

(36 1⁄2” x 59 1⁄2”) aerial

Power Plant

Top level mezzanine/viewing opened 

to the public in 2006. 

Inside tour by appointment. Accessible 

ramp system installed in 2006.

Refrigeration Plant 

Opened to the public in 2008; no 

current exhibits.

General Store/Visitor Center

Opened to the public in 2008 as a 

visitor center.

Exterior brochure box with WRST maps.

Museum portion: The right half of 

the store is a recreation of the General 

Store using an original 1917 inventory 

and includes 822 objects (mostly 

reproduced cans with scanned labels) 

and 378 historic objects (dishes, pots 

and pans, glassware, house hold items). 

Harpers Ferry Center installed these 

objects in May 2010.

Natural history: In-house exhibits on 

wildflowers, bear safety, maps, ore 

display, historical photos, aerial view 

of glacier, leave no trace, and safety 

messages.

Alaskan Geographic Association sales 

take up about one quarter of the store.

Train Depot

Opened to the public in 2004. Used as 

a visitor center until 2008 and currently 

self-guided.

One exhibit panel outside the front 

door produced in 2010.

National Creek Flood (22” x 28”) 

General Store interior- NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 25

The Park in 2011

The Visitor Center is staffed from 

9:00 am to 5:30 pm. Short talks (15-20 

minutes) are offered throughout the day 

at various locations within the NHL. 

Informal interpretive roving occurs 

daily including a three-hour rove on the 

Root Glacier Trail most mornings and 

townsite roves of 30 minutes.

Guided Tour of the Concentration Mill

Offered by St. Elias Alpine Guides 

(SEAG) http://www.steliasguides.com

The 2 1⁄2-hour tour begins at the SEAG 

office on the main street. Accompanied 

by a guide, visitors walk through 

town and eventually tour the 14-story 

Concentration Mill and the Ammonialeaching Facility. Tours are at 9:30 am, 

1:30 pm, and 3:30 pm from May 26th 

to September 11th, 2011. The cost is 

$25 per person.

NPS Partners

Wrangell Mountains Center

http://www.wrangells.org/

Based in McCarthy, Alaska, the private, 

non-profit Wrangell Mountains Center 

fosters appreciation, understanding, 

and stewardship of wildlands and 

mountain culture in Alaska through 

scientific and artistic inquiry in the 

Wrangell Mountains. 

One exhibit panel on the mezzanine 

installed in 2006:

The Power Behind the Mines & Up in 

Flames (16” x 42 1⁄2”)

Kennecott Cottage

Opened to the public in 2006.

One exhibit panel installed in 2007:

Cottage Life (23 3⁄4” w x 29 3⁄4”)

Other Buildings (not yet open to the 

public) 

Old School (Blackburn School) 

opened in 2004 as offices.

New School (Kennecott School) 

opened as maintenance offices and 

break room in 2004; accessible ramp 

built in 2011.

West Bunkhouse opening date not 

determined at this time.

Machine Shop scheduled to open to 

the public in 2017.

Personal Services

District Interpreter, GS-11 

Lead Seasonal Park Ranger, GS-9 

3 Seasonal Park Rangers, GS-5 

2 Student Conservation Association 

(SCA) volunteers

Lindsay Heinrich, Kennecott interpreter - NPS Carol 

Harding
26 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

The Park in 2011

Friends of Kennicott is a locallybased organization that assists NPS 

efforts to preserve and manage the 

historic resources of the Kennecott 

Mines National Historic Landmark 

in a way that maintains the character 

of Kennecott and McCarthy for the 

visiting public and residents alike.

Issues

There are multiple issues, discussed 

during planning workshops, that have the 

potential to influence or hinder effective 

interpretation. They include . . . 

Wayfinding and Orientation 

Remote Access/Parking/Roads

Because of Kennecott’s remote 

location, and the patchwork of private 

and public lands, visitors often have 

difficulty locating parking at the end 

of the McCarthy Road, figuring out 

the shuttle system, and finding their 

way to Kennecott. In the historic 

landmark, parking is extremely limited. 

Transportation of people, supplies, 

equipment, and exhibits is challenging, 

time consuming, and expensive. It 

is difficult to get visitors up the road 

effectively and at the same time limit 

vehicles in town. Road maintenance is 

shared between the state and NPS.

Meeting the needs of students, writers, 

artists, scientists, travelers, and local 

citizens, they offer opportunities 

for people of all ages and abilities to 

explore, express, and be transformed 

through direct experience. 

McCarthy-Kennicott Historical 

Museum

McCarthy-Kennicott Historical 

Museum is a private, non-profit 

organization run exclusively by 

volunteers, and housed in the Copper 

River & Northwestern Railway depot 

(1924) in McCarthy. The Museum 

is dedicated to the promotion of 

McCarthy and Kennicott history, to 

preservation and display of artifacts 

representative of the early 20th 

century and the search and discovery 

of minerals in this area, and to 

interpretation of the lives of the people 

who lived in the Kennicott Valley. It 

is open daily, Memorial Day through 

Labor Day. 

Friends of Kennicott

http://friendsofkennicott.org/

Friends of Kennicott was founded 

in 1988 to conduct emergency 

stabilization of Kennecott mine 

buildings and later to facilitate 

acquisition by the NPS under a 

partnership management strategy. 

Foot bridge over Kennicott River - NPS Carol Harding
National Park Service 27

Issues

Visitor Center

Because the Visitor Center is located 

in the historic General Store in the 

middle of the town, visitors may 

not receive any park information or 

wayfinding until they wander down the 

main road. The General Store has been 

set up like a historic store, so the space 

has limited use for visitor contact and 

interpretation.

Unreliable Power and Communications 

The landmark has telephone, cell 

phone, and Internet service, which is 

currently being upgraded with a $5 

million microwave relay system and 

associated technology improvements 

by Copper Valley Telecom. There is no 

power utility or other public utilities 

(except telecommunications). All 

power comes from generators or solar 

panels of private users.

Historic Structures and Objects

It is a challenge to be flexible and 

responsive to community concerns 

and still adhere to preservation 

standards and provide security 

or long-term care to historic 

objects, particularly without heat 

and electricity in many buildings. 

Kennecott has limited curatorial space 

and buildings lack environmental 

control, security, and adequate 

staffing.

McCarthy Road Information Station 

(MRIS)

Because of private property at the 

end of the McCarthy Road, the NPS 

does not own land at the bridge where 

visitors arrive, park, and enter the 

Kennicott Valley. The existing MRIS 

is located a mile from the foot bridge. 

Most visitors drive by without noticing 

the information station and are 

confused when they arrive at private 

property at the end of the road. 

Shuttle Bus Turn Around

The 5,000 square foot shuttle stop and 

turn around was completed in June of 

2010. This area was designed to serve 

as a transportation hub and gateway 

and provide a pleasing and memorable 

entrance to the NHL for the visitors 

arriving via shuttle. 

A local business, Wrangell Mountain Air, 

provides the shuttle buses, and St. Elias 

Alpine Guides, a park concessionaire, 

provides the coordination for visitors 

to be dropped off. The shuttle buses, 

however, do not use the shuttle stop, 

but drop passengers in front of a private 

business. Visitors, as a result, miss the 

gateway orientation by the National 

Park Service and are dependent on local 

businesses for information regarding 

the location of NPS services, other local 

businesses, the identity of buildings, and 

what is NPS or private property.

Shuttle Turn Around - Brent Ward photo

VC store window - NPS photo Carol Harding
28 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Issues

Safety

There are safety issues throughout 

the town and in and around historic 

buildings, including, rotten timbers, 

uneven terrain, sharp, rusted, steel 

objects, and motorized vehicles on 

roads and trails.

Budget and Staffing 

There is no budget or staffing to 

implement exhibit plans or maintain 

current exhibits.

Private Property

The NPS does not have authority 

to regulate or control use of private 

property including noise, traffic, 

parking, off-road vehicle use within the 

landmark, except in its role regarding 

the covenants attached to deeds for 

lots in the Kennecott Mill Site unit of 

Kennecott Subdivision. 

Alaska National Interest Lands 

Conservation Act (ANILCA) 

Under its interpretation of ANILCA, 

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and 

Preserve allows federally qualified 

subsistence users to operate off-road 

vehicles when engaged in subsistence 

activities within the landmark.

Noise

There is a considerable amount of 

construction noise generated by 

contractors, the NPS restoration crew 

stabilizing and renovating historic 

buildings, and generators that power 

day-to-day operations. There also 

is non-NPS visitor traffic, private 

construction activities and public 

events in the landmark.

NPS/Local Relationships 

Locals have differing viewpoints on 

exhibit direction in the park and 

believe park management should 

use local hire practices for staff. 

Warning No Trespassing - NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 29

Part 2

ACTIONS

Miners with ore cars in Kennecott Mines— McCarthy-Kennicott Historical Museum
30 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Introduction

Part 2 of this plan describes the actions 

that park staff and partners will take to 

build on The Foundation, described in 

Part 1. 

Since viable plans need to be nimble 

and responsive to changing conditions, 

staff should take advantage of new 

opportunities as they arise. No plan can 

foresee every eventuality. 

This plan, however, will provide a 

framework for considering other 

interpretive proposals as they emerge. 

Part 1 should function as a yardstick 

against which new ideas are measured. 

When properly used, Part 1 provides 

priorities that can help move interpretive 

programming in a consistent direction 

despite changing times. 

Each action item included in Part 2 is 

bulleted in the plan narrative and listed in 

the Implementation Plan near the end of 

this document. View of Mill from overlook - NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 31

•	 Review the information that is 

available at existing visitor contact 

stations (Copper Valley Chamber 

of Commerce, park headquarters, 

Chitina, state rest stops, etc.) and adapt 

as needed. 

•	 Ensure that basic visiting information 

is available at the McCarthy Road 

Information Station (whether it is 

staffed or not) and work with the 

stakeholder who maintains property 

at the foot bridge to provide useful 

visiting materials. 

•	 Work with the McCarthy-Kennicott 

Historical Museum to share visiting 

information and maintain their supply 

of brochures, maps, etc. Explore ways 

to cooperatively enhance the Museum 

as a welcome center. 

•	 Develop a long-term plan to secure 

NPS property near the foot bridge 

for an information station. In the 

meantime, develop a plan to increase 

visibility and visitor use at the 

McCarthy Road Information Station.

•	 Offer visiting materials to stakeholders 

that operate shuttles between 

McCarthy and Kennecott. 

•	 Initiate an updated visitor survey.

Recommended Actions

Actions to Explain Visiting Options 

Not all visitors will want or make use 

of visiting materials. However, as the 

University of Alaska survey revealed, 

and as workshop participants generally 

agreed, some types of audiences need 

and would benefit from orientation.

These bulleted actions will clarify the 

interpretive opportunities available 

from the NPS, for a variety of potential 

audiences. 

•	 Contact partners and stakeholders 

for input on what information 

they find most useful. Develop 

orientation materials that partners and 

stakeholders will distribute voluntarily. 

Begin by offering the existing tear-off. 

•	 Review the WRST website. Based on 

website content, make sure that visitors 

who enter the landmark by road or by 

air understand the amenities available 

and the options for organizing and 

enjoying their visit. Do they also 

arrive understanding the national 

significance of the landmark? Revise as 

appropriate. 

MRIS cabin and kiosk - NPS photo Carol Harding
32 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Recommended Actions

•	 The “What is that Rock?” panel will be 

rewritten and reoriented.

New interpretive objectives will 

introduce the landmark’s overall 

theme of change as well as include an 

explanation of the rocky appearance 

of the glacier moraine. This location, as 

well as the Train Depot area, is an ideal 

place to explain the significant retreat 

of the glacier over the past 100 years 

and pose questions about the reasons 

glaciers are melting. 

Future development of this location is 

currently being discussed and largely 

outside the purview of this plan. 

However, additional visitor services, 

specifically restrooms and public 

telephone to contact local businesses, 

would enhance the staging potential of 

this location. 

Even before additional development 

occurs, 

•	 NPS staff can experiment with 

informal, roving ranger contact (or 

volunteers or stakeholder groups) at 

this gateway to the town. In addition 

to helping with orientation, these 

personal contacts would enhance 

the sense of arrival and help gather 

feedback on what arriving visitors 

need and what departing visitors have 

experienced. 

Actions to Enhance a Sense of Arrival

Given the nuanced, multi-faceted nature 

of Kennecott, at least some audiences 

will benefit from a defined point of 

arrival, a location that visually signals 

that they are entering a special place, 

and that gives a basic introduction to the 

buildings, artifacts, and landscapes they 

are about to explore. 

The overlook, just before entering the 

town, already provides that sense of 

arrival for some. 

Currently, that location includes an 

entrance sign and covered kiosk. Panels 

within the kiosk include a map of 

Kennecott, safety messages, information 

on hiking and camping, an introduction to 

the demand for global copper in the early 

20th century, and an explanation of the 

work that continues on town buildings. 

Recommendations for this area 

include . . .

Each of the existing panels will remain 

although the content should be reviewed 

periodically to ensure that the narrative and 

town map is up-to-date. The map should 

show public/private property and reflect 

up-to-date occupancy and use. Safety 

information must be current and reflect NPS 

management goals. 

Entrance to Kennecott - NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 33

Recommended Actions

Actions to Help Guide Visitors 

While some visitors to Kennecott will 

seek or require little or no assistance, 

others have expressed interest in 

self-guiding aids. To assist with selfdiscovery. . . 

•	 Review existing maps and trail 

guides and, if needed, develop new 

self-guided, walking tour materials. 

At a minimum provide a map 

showing established trails, distances, 

arduousness of terrain, distinctions 

in property ownership, and historic 

building use and reuse. 

Actions to Provide On-site Orientation 

While some visitors get information from 

guide services, NPS-provided orientation 

to the backcountry currently takes place 

in the historic General Store near the 

center of town. 

Since the Blackburn School—the first 

building at the town’s entrance—

will become available for public use, 

workshop participants suggested that 

it be used to strengthen the arrival 

experience and offer backcountry 

information, orientation to Kennecott, 

and limited sales.

•	 Convert the Blackburn School into 

a staffed, contact station offering 

backcountry information, orientation, 

and safety messages. 

•	 Review current backcountry materials 

(maps, safety messages, etc.) and revise 

or expand as needed. 

•	 Install interpretive panels that 

introduce each of the landmark’s 

themes and that interpret the 

Blackburn School building history. 

•	 Update the Scope of Sales and develop 

displays for Alaska Geographic sales. 

Visitors at the Shuttle Turn Around kiosk - NPS photo by 

Carol Harding
34 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Recommended Actions

Flat, ground level signs; short wood 

stakes; or painted or inscribed rocks 

with numbers. 

Install some of these options in a 

few locations, gather feedback from 

residents and users, and include the 

preferred solution in an amended 

Sign Guidelines. 

•	 Experiment with emerging 

technologies as another way to 

enhance walking tour interpretation, 

enrich interpretation in the central 

exhibit area, provide accessibility (at 

the General Manager’s Office, for 

example), and interpret ruins and 

collapsed buildings. 

Mobile Technology

While the Kennecott site does not 

currently offer broadband cellular and 

Internet coverage, it is expected to come 

to the area by 2012. 

In order to provide the widest range 

of service to visitors, while broadband 

cellular coverage is ideal (there is 

no need for the NPS to provide the 

connection), the use of an NPSprovided, site-wide Wi-Fi network is an 

option that should be implemented no 

matter whether broadband cellular is 

available or not. 

•	 Kennecott does receive a relatively 

large percentage of international 

visitors, so walking tour materials 

should be translated into other foreign 

languages such as Italian, Spanish, 

French, and German. 

•	 Carefully consider distribution of 

printed materials. Reduce the visual 

impact of distribution boxes in the 

town by providing materials online 

and by encouraging partners and 

stakeholders to assist with distribution. 

•	 Work cooperatively with the McCarthyKennicott Historical Museum to offer 

self-guided walking tour materials 

for Kennecott. With NPS assistance, 

perhaps the Museum can update their 

printed tour while the NPS experiments 

with other media (see below). 

•	 Experiment with a wayfinding and 

building numbering system that can be 

used in conjunction with walking tour 

materials. 

Possible solutions include: 

In ground pieces of Kennecott 

machinery (wheel or cog) that point 

toward trails; 

Replica historic and safety signs (see 

the existing Signs Guidelines); 

Original Kennecott fire sign - NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 35

Recommended Actions

If these technology experiments are 

generally positive, develop one of them 

as a complement to the interpretive 

panel system used on the interior of 

town buildings, the self-guided walking 

tour printed materials, and guided tours 

offered by the NPS and stakeholder/

partners. 

•	 In conjunction with a review of tour 

materials and media, develop a new 

trail plan that considers the sentiments 

of current private property as well as 

access to important interpretive sites, 

features, and overlooks. 

As part of this plan, design loop 

trails that maximize walking time by 

avoiding backtracking along the same 

path, provide access to contemplative 

viewsheds, and link to the Wagon Road 

to McCarthy, the Kennecott Cemetery, 

and more industrial/corporate sites 

including the Tram at the top of the mill. 

The age of many visitors—in 2004, 

nearly half were over 50 years of age—

suggests that discrete seating might be 

a welcome addition to town paths, not 

just for respite but for contemplation. 

•	 Identify a limited number of locations 

for non-intrusive seating and 

recommend appropriate materials and 

design that will blend into the landscape 

and respect the historical character of 

Kennecott.

Two of the options for delivering content 

include:

Quick Response (QR) codes

QR codes are randomly generated 

squares that contain information that 

can be acted upon by computers with 

QR visual readers. As visitors locate 

the QR codes during their visit to the 

town, they can use their QR reader 

via the smartphone’s camera. The 

NPS also can loan (for a small fee and 

security deposit) Wi-Fi enabled media 

devices, like tablet PCs or iPods to 

visitors without smartphones.

QR code

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)

RFID is a system of nearly paper-thin 

electronic tags that can be placed 

inconspicuously anywhere around 

the mill site. With the help of an RFID 

reader and media delivery device, 

visitors can walk around the town 

and have media begin without any 

interaction with the device. 

RFID might be an option if the NPS 

agrees to loan devices that work with 

this technology. 
36 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Recommended Actions

be used for “Assembly Occupancy” 

because of life safety issues. 

In addition to interpretive exhibits, the 

revamped General Store/Visitor Center 

will include: 

Space to greet and orient visitors.

Audiovisual space for 20 visitors—the 

Recreation Hall handles larger groups.

Limited interpretation of the historic 

uses of the building as General Store, 

Post Office, and warehouse. 

Specific steps in planning for this central 

exhibit space include . . . 

•	 Request funding for exhibit design, 

fabrication, and installation.

•	 Review existing audiovisual programs 

and determine how and if they fit into 

a centralized museum. The central 

museum will need one program to 

present an overview of Kennecott and 

place the town into historic context, 

particularly its global significance. AV 

is an excellent medium for focusing on 

dynamic stories including processes 

like change, for establishing context, 

and for showing what visitors cannot 

see—the mines, historic footage of 

Kennecott in the early 20th century, and 

Kennecott in winter. 

Actions to Provide a Central 

Interpretive Focus

In order to minimize interpretive 

intrusions in the town itself, workshop 

participants recommended using the 

General Store as the center for interpretive 

media. In effect, the store would function 

like Kennecott’s museum. 

Despite the fact that the third floor is a 

large, open area that would be a superior 

alternative for exhibits, the space cannot 

Visitor Center 2nd floor exhibits area
National Park Service 37

Recommended Actions

As the Sign Guidelines note, 

current stakeholder sentiment 

prefers to minimize interpretive 

signs outside buildings. Instead of 

exterior interpretive signs, workshop 

participants suggested expansion 

of the family of modest, interior 

interpretive panels that already exists.

Interior Interpretive Panels

•	 Refine the family of interpretive signs 

that exists in the Power Plant, Cottage, 

and Recreation Hall, for example. 

As an alternative to traditional exhibits 

such as refurnished rooms or 3-D 

vignettes, experiment with a system of 

durable and inexpensive fabric panels 

that use historic images and text to 

bring the interiors to life. 

For simple messages, consider use 

of “window shade signs” described 

and illustrated on page 12 of the Sign 

Guidelines. 

•	 Prepare an addendum to the Sign 

Guidelines that describes the range 

of interior sign applications (wall 

mounted, railing mounted), color 

palette, typeface, sizes, and acceptable 

materials/hardware. 

Other, shorter AV programs might be 

more focused and address specific 

themes. 

•	 Develop a panel (see the discussion of 

appropriate interpretive panels below) 

that interprets the Kennecott Post Office. 

•	 Develop a similar interpretive panel 

that complements the existing store 

goods displays and interprets the role 

of the store in Kennecott life. 

•	 Install the original, recently donated 

General Store cash register. 

Actions to Interpret Individual 

Structures 

The Kennecott Sign Guidelines (2005) 

surveyed the historic signs associated 

with the town and mill structures and 

made recommendations that would 

enhance visitor understanding of 

building use. These guidelines provide 

a rationale for exterior signage and a 

process for reviewing any proposed signs. 

•	 Begin to implement the Sign 

Guidelines starting with exterior, 

identification signs on the Train 

Depot (including Wells Fargo), Post 

Office, General Store, and fire hose 

houses that replicate documented 

early 20th-century signs. Implement 

building identification numbers. 

•	 Revisit the need for signs that address 

temporary conditions—the 2006 

National Creek flood or current or 

future construction projects, for 

example. 

•	 As soon as it is made redundant 

by other media (printed materials 

or emerging technology), remove 

the kiosk across the street from the 

General Store. 

Depot c.1939 - West Archival Coll.
38 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Recommended Actions

Recreation Hall

This 2,280 square foot building was 

the hub of social life for the mill town. 

Dances, holiday festivities, indoor sports, 

and moving picture shows took place 

here for mill workers and families alike. 

It was the first building in the town that 

NPS, in partnership with Friends of 

Kennicott, restored for adaptive reuse. 

Since opening in 2003, the building 

provides a venue for interpretive 

programs as well as community activities, 

and can show DVDs with a theater size 

screen and projector. Primarily used for 

meetings and events, the building is selfguided and open to the public when not 

in use. Currently, Wrangell Mountains 

Center (WMC) partners with NPS to 

coordinate the use of the facility. 

Interpretive Story: The Recreation Hall 

was a community refuge, a place of 

gathering and respite from long, hard 

days of work.

•	 When the Blackburn School is opened 

as a contact orientation station, 

remove the brochure box outside the 

Recreation Hall.

•	 Continue to use as a place for public 

and NPS events and meetings.

Blackburn School

Commonly referred to as the “Old 

School,” this one-room schoolhouse 

was moved from the abandoned town of 

Blackburn (1⁄2 mile north of McCarthy) to 

Kennecott in 1914 for use as Kennecott’s 

first school. Classes later moved in 1922 

to the two-room “New School.” Not only 

children attended class here. With a large 

number of immigrant workers, Kennecott 

held English and citizen classes. In 1920, 

the night school had 126 students from 23 

nations, while only eight children attended 

school during the day.

Restored in 2004, the 450 square foot 

building currently serves as offices for 

law enforcement and interpretation and 

is not open to the public. 

Interpretive Story: Education in 

Kennecott was a community affair with a 

quality school for students during the day 

and citizen classes for employees at night.

•	 Future plans include using the building 

as a NPS visitor contact station. The 

outside deck would be ideal, with 

its accessible ramp, for interpreting 

natural history. The Alaska Geographic 

store would relocated here. 

Rec Hall - NPS photo Carol Harding

Old School -NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 39

Recommended Actions

single men on the upper floors. The 

West Bunkhouse is the best example of a 

preserved town building and illustrates 

how miners lived. The bunkhouse 

currently serves as a storage area for 

maintenance and is not open to the 

public. Future renovation plans depend 

on funding.

As proposed in other plans, the 

bunkhouse might be operated by 

a partner as an educational center, 

although the NPS must not jeopardize 

the historical integrity of the 

building. Appropriate to its historic 

function, this building could serve as 

classrooms, dining hall, and overnight 

accommodation. 

•	 Continue to pursue use of the West 

Bunkhouse as an educational center 

operated by a partner organization but 

with programming that also meets NPS 

goals. 

•	 Develop an interpretive panel for the 

interior that links the building, via text 

and images, to the historic use of the 

structure. Include interpretation of the 

Japanese cooks.

Kennecott School

After the Blackburn School could no 

longer accommodate the growing 

number of children, this 1,200 square 

foot, two-room building became the 

“New” School. As many as 20 students 

attended classes with two teachers. 

Traveling ministers used the school 

for weekly Sunday school and church 

services. The grounds held an ice skating 

rink in winter and baseball field in 

summer. 

Restored in 2004, with an accessibility 

ramp built in 2011, the New School is 

currently used as maintenance office 

and break room. Future plans for this 

building are as a support facility for the 

West Bunkhouse or for exhibits.

•	 Develop an interpretive panel for the 

interior that links the building, via text 

and images, to the historic use of the 

structure.

West Bunkhouse 

Built in 1917, this four story, 11,830 

square foot structure was the first 

dormitory constructed in the mill town. 

The facility had washing and lockers, 

housing for the Japanese cooks and food 

prep area at ground level, with dining 

room and kitchen on the main floor, 

and dormitories that housed up to 80 

New School - NPS photo Carol Harding
40 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Recommended Actions

Refrigeration Plant

Although Kennecott had tons of ice 

literally on their doorstep, the company 

used the most modern technology for 

refrigeration. Ammonia cooling kept 

meat and perishables fresh for the 

mining camp. 

This 778 square foot building opened to 

the public in 2008 and is self-guided. 

Interpretive Story: Food played in 

important role in Kennecott life—food 

supplies, food preservation (including 

the ammonia refrigeration system to keep 

meat frozen), food preparation, and food 

consumption.

•	 Produce at least one panel for the 

interior.

West Bunkhouse & Refrigeration Plant - NPS photo Carol 

Harding
National Park Service 41

Recommended Actions

The 336 square foot depot, restored 

in 2004 and opened to the public as 

a visitor contact station from 2004 to 

2008, is self-guided. 

Interpretive Story: Constructed with 

incredible tenacity, perseverance, and 

engineering ingenuity, the Copper River 

& Northwestern Railway was critical to 

the mine’s success.

Train Depot

This one-story wood framed structure 

served as the ending terminal for the 

Copper River & Northwestern Railway. 

Both goods and people coming to 

and from Kennecott passed through 

the depot. Locals nicknamed the 

CR&NWR the “Can’t Run & Never 

Will” because of numerous shutdowns 

caused by snow slides, bridge washouts, 

and other natural disasters and hazards 

along the route. 

Ranger talk at Depot - NPS photo

•	 Produce at least one panel for the 

interior.

Test application of the proposed sign 

system expansion and self-guided 

walking tour materials. 

Suggest links to other venues that 

interpret the railroad, specifically 

the McCarthy-Kennicott Historical 

Museum in McCarthy. 
42 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Recommended Actions

and 1930s, and is the logical place to 

interpret corporate management and 

Kennecott’s managers. 

This 2,451 square foot building opened to 

the public in 2008 as a self-guided facility.

Interpretive Story: Management of 

Kennecott mines and labor force, 

political climate, economics, and logistics 

was accomplished with creativity, skill, 

and at times heavy handedness.

•	 Develop a hands-on resource space 

for corporate history. This approach 

encourages a sense of discovery and 

exploration. 

Plan components include . . . 

Durable, functional workplace 

furnishings similar to items used 

in the early 20th century and still 

available from modern retailers. Use 

mostly large tables and office chairs, 

tabletop magnifying glasses, and 

storage drawers. 

Reinstallation of refinished drafting 

table and storage drawers that were 

taken out of the building during 

restoration and currently stored in 

the Machine Shop.

Interpretive panels that introduce 

corporate leadership, including 

financial investors, and their on-site 

General Manager’s Office

The log portion of the Manager’s Office 

is the oldest building in Kennecott. 

Later additions provided more office, 

safe, payroll, and drafting space. Serious 

deterioration required a four-year 

reconstruction effort. The building was 

the hub of corporate activity in the 1920s 

Visitors walking to General Manager’s Office - NPS photo 

Carol Harding
National Park Service 43

Recommended Actions

necessitated continual modifications and 

additions to the structure, leading to the 

surviving, unusual roofline. Two separate 

tramways connected the five Kennecott 

mines to the mill, delivering up to 1,200 

tons of ore per day. From the tram, the 

ore went through a series of crushers and 

sorters using gravity and water to move 

the rock from one process to the next. 

The mill is opened for organized tours 

only.

Interpretive Story: No other place in 

Kennecott is better equipped to interpret 

mining techniques of the era—one of the 

contributing factors to the landmark’s 

national significance. The 14-story mill 

surrounds visitors with authenticity. It 

offers the opportunity to see inside the 

belly of the industrial beast that labored 

to sate the global appetite for copper. 

•	 When the current concession 

agreement ends in 2012, ensure that 

new conditions reflect interpretive 

goals including the themes, audiences, 

and audience experiences discussed in 

the Foundation of this plan. 

Consider whether the existing 

schedule of tours (three, 2 1⁄2-hour 

tours per day) meets the demand for 

building access—an estimated 75-80% 

of all town visitors do not get inside. 

jobs. Link Kennecott to the global 

demand for copper and the creation 

of a multi-national corporation. 

Existing historic photos of the 

town, remounted to remove 

imperfections.

Other media that allow visitors to 

access biographical information, 

reproduction mining maps, photos, 

surveys, engineering reports, 

employment records, blueprints 

(McCarthy-Kennicott Historical 

Museum has an original blueprint) 

and drawings of buildings and 

machinery. These media could be 

as simple as durable reproductions 

or databases accessed by electronic 

device. 

Appropriately, the Manager’s Office 

also can be used as a starting point 

for industrial walking tours (guided 

or self-guided) that focus on the 

corporation, mining, and milling. 

The second floor is not accessible and 

not appropriate for regular interpretive 

use. 

Concentration Mill 

Construction of the mill began in 1908, 

but the building was not completed until 

1928. New mining processes, increases 

in capacity, and deteriorating ore quality 

View of Mill from Machine Shop – NPS photo Carol 

Harding
44 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Recommended Actions

•	 Reinstall a shaker table to display the 

crushing and sorting process. Refer to 

the Accessibility Report of 2005 for the 

full plan.

Machine Shop

Built in 1917, the Machine Shop served 

as a hub for all the Kennecott operations, 

and is still in fairly good condition. Many 

unique, site-built pieces of equipment 

remain. Equipment that needed repair 

traveled from the top of the mill building 

on a narrow gauge service tram, crossing 

the main railway tracks by way of a 

drawbridge. The drawbridge support 

is still standing just north of the mill 

building. 

The 5,500 square foot Machine Shop, 

with accessibility ramp, is currently used 

for maintenance storage, and will not 

open to the public until 2017. 

Interpretive Story: Men and machines 

kept the mines productive and mill 

equipment running. 

•	 Produce at least one panel for the 

interior.

•	 This is the largest open interior space 

in Kennecott, and could be used to 

display existing machinery such as 

an overhead hoist, forge, drive shaft, 

and belts, as well as created scale 

The Sacking Garage in the south corner 

of the bottom of the mill is a good 

location to demonstrate the amount 

of physical labor involved in sacking 

and loading ore. High grade ore was 

handpicked off the conveyer belt and sent 

down the ore chutes, packed in burlap 

bags, and shipped out on the railroad.

•	 Bring the sacking process to life by 

displaying an original flat car loaded 

with filled burlap bags.

•	 Show the sacking and stacking process 

with working pulleys to raise and lower 

the chute. 

•	 Reinstall the original tracking scale and 

winch used to pull cars back and forth.

The Sacking Shed, directly in front of 

the north end of the Leaching Plant, 

is currently being renovated. The 

renovation is funded and scheduled to be 

completed in 2011, but is attached to the 

Leaching Plant which needs a new north 

wall and foundation. The Leaching Plant 

work is not funded. 

Because it is located across from the mill, 

this would be the ideal spot to interpret the 

entire extraction process for those who 

cannot make the Mill Tour. There could be 

a self-guided tour, ending with a walk into 

the north end of the Leaching Plant.

Machine Shop - NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 45

Recommended Actions

power in the wilderness, on a sizable 

scale, required imagination and 

herculean effort.

•	 Retain the existing interpretation.

Kennecott Cottage

Kennecott’s 720 square foot cottages 

were available for management and a few 

long-term employees that were allowed 

to bring their families. A small cottage 

rented for $15-25 a month.

models. There has been considerable 

discussion about contacting Charles 

Hawley, who purchased mill 

machinery in 1938 and shipped it to 

Dunkle Mines, to identify and return 

original machines and tools.

Power Plant

Characterized by four towering smoke 

stacks and constructed in three phases, 

the Power Plant is a three-storied, 13,218 

square foot structure. Burned in August 

of 1924 and rebuilt by October of 1924, 

the plant used two diesel generators, one 

Westinghouse steam turbine, one Allis 

Chalmers steam turbine, and a Pelton 

water wheel to provide power and steam 

heat to the entire town. Steam traveled 

to outlying buildings through “utilidors,” 

underground wooden conduits. These 

were often built under wooden sidewalks, 

keeping them free of snow and ice in the 

winter. Water for the steam boilers and 

Pelton water wheel was diverted from 

Bonanza Creek, north of the town site.

The plant’s mezzanine opened to the 

public in 2008, along with an accessible 

ramp system inside the building used 

only for private tours.

Interpretive Story: Power played a critical 

role in Kennecott’s self-sufficiency. 

Industry requires power, and generating 

Kennecott cottages - B. Ward photo

Power Plant - NPS Carol Harding
46 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Recommended Actions

Kennecott Cemetery

Burials began in the early days of 

settlement and continued until the 

mine closed in 1938. Those interred in 

the cemetery often died from hazards 

associated with mining, and represent 

the remarkably diverse ethnicity of 

Kennecott’s population. The graves, 

not segregated by race, religion, age or 

gender, serve as a last physical memorial 

to those who lived, worked and died at 

Kennecott. Interpretation of Kennecott 

Cemetery is needed to enhance visitor 

understanding and appreciation. 

Interpretive Story: The historic 

development of the Kennecott Cemetery, 

the lives of people buried there, and 

rehabilitation of the historic landscape 

provide information about the social 

history and cultural practices of a thriving 

company mining town over time.

•	 Consider an interpretive panel along 

the Wagon Road to address the 

importance of the cemetery and its 

relationship to Kennecott. 

•	 Consider developing a map for selfguided walking tour in print or digital 

media. 

Restored in 2006, one cottage is owned 

by NPS and is open to the public and selfguided. A second cottage was recently 

purchased in 2011. Its function has not 

yet been determined. The remaining two 

cottages are privately owned.

Interpretive Story: Family and 

community life was fostered to promote 

retention of valuable employees and 

ensure consistency and efficiency in mine 

management.

•	 Review existing interpretation. 

Consider whether the content should 

be changed to interpret the different 

types of residential structures in 

the town and at the mines, the class 

differences that housing implied, and 

the chronology of “abandonment” and 

“reoccupation” of the town. 

The cottages would be a suitable place 

to experiment with images on fabric or 

scrim or provide a home for the visual 

arts or poetry that reflect the living 

history of local residents. Examples could 

include art from the local community, the 

Ahtna community, and children’s art, as 

well as a place for visitors to reflect and 

express their experiences in the park in a 

personal, reflective, creative way.

Kennecott grave - NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 47

Implementation Plan & 

Exhibit Phases

Exhibit implementation will depend on 

funding, perhaps from different sources. 

At the time of this plan, national (line 

item) funding most likely will not be 

available for exhibit implementation 

because of other NPS and DOI funding 

priorities. Regional (fee demonstration) 

funding may be the best source for 

interpretive work, but will require a park 

priority for consideration. 

Private funding is another option. WRST 

has had success in the past obtaining 

funding from the Stephen and Mary 

Birch Foundation, receiving $50,000 

for three consecutive years (2006-2008) 

to fund exhibits in the General Store. 

Another $50,000 request in 2010 was not 

successful. Other examples of funding 

potential are Wells Fargo Bank, J. P. 

Morgan Bank, Guggenheim Foundation, 

Havemeyer Foundation, Kennecott 

Corporation, and some of the other 

manufacturers that provided equipment 

to the mines such as General Electric, 

Allis-Chalmers, and Westinghouse.

According to Ron Simpson, local 

historian and Ahtna Elder, Copper Valley 

Development Council is prepared to help 

pursue funding to support Alaska Native 

programs in Kennecott.

Short-Term Projects (1 – 3 Years)

Funding

•	 Request exhibit funding for short-term 

exhibit projects (see page 48). 

•	 Request exhibit funding for Phase II 

Design and Phase III Fabrication and 

Installation of Interpretive Media 

(see page 50). 

•	 Request funding for an updated Visitor 

Survey.

•	 Request funding for an addendum to 

the 2005 Sign Guidelines to define the 

family of panels, trailhead signs, their 

location, and appearance.

Pre-Visit Planning

•	 Get stakeholder input on visitor 

information and orientation handouts.

•	 Offer maps and guides on-line and via 

willing partners and stakeholders.

•	 Review and revise the WRST website 

for Kennecott visitor information.

•	 Ensure that basic information is 

available along the McCarthy Road 

and at other visitor centers and contact 

stations in the area.

•	 Offer visitor orientation materials to 

shuttle operators.

Mill-HAER illustration

Visitor Center-HAER illustration
48 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Implementation Plan & Exhibit Phases

•	 Translate visitor orientation materials 

and other publications into foreign 

languages. 

Programs

•	 Complete Memorandum of Agreement 

with McCarthy-Kennicott Museum for 

partnership with NPS.

•	 Experiment with roving staff at 

entrance overlook.

•	 Experiment with emerging 

technologies for walking tours.

•	 Implement an updated Visitor Survey.

Publications

•	 Review and revise maps and trail 

guides.

•	 Review and revise backcountry 

materials.

•	 Work with Museum to develop a 

self-guided walking tour that includes 

trails, private property, use and reuse 

of historic buildings.

•	 Amend Sign Guidelines to include 

standards for interpretive signs and 

trailheads.

Buildings & Exhibits

•	 Revitalize McCarthy Road Information 

Station by building a more attractive 

sign, placing it closer to the road, 

and brushing the area so that it has a 

welcoming appearance.

•	 Convert the Blackburn School into 

a contact station and move Alaska 

Geographic sales into this space.

•	 Implement a building identification 

system (refer to Sign Guidelines 2005).

•	 Develop building signs that replicate 

original Post Office, General Store 

(include window shade sign) and 

Depot (include Wells Fargo sign) signs.

•	 Install original cash register in General 

Store.

•	 Restore and install drafting table and 

drawers and remount six photos in 

General Manager’s Office.

•	 Identify appropriate seating locations 

throughout the town and install 

benches.

•	 Experiment with fabric interpretive 

panels in some of the historic 

buildings.

McCarthy Rd. Info. Station - NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 49

Implementation Plan & Exhibit Phases

•	 Restore and install shaker tables to 

demonstrate mill process in Leaching 

Plant’s Sacking Shed.

•	 Develop interpretive panels: 

For Blackburn School, Train Depot, 

Refrigeration Plant, West Bunkhouse, 

Kennecott School, General Manager’s 

Office, Machine Shop, and Cemetery.

To introduce Kennecott NHL’s 

themes. 

To revise or update panels in Cottage, 

Power Plant and Recreation Hall.

Replace existing exterior glacier panel 

at Shuttle Turn Around.

Long-Term Projects (4 – 10 years)

Programs

•	 Pursue partner for education center 

(West Bunkhouse and New School).

Buildings & Exhibits

•	 Develop film on Kennecott that 

communicates the exploration, 

discovery, development, and historical 

impact of the Kennecott Mining 

enterprise.

•	 Develop a new trail plan with loops.

•	 Partner with the McCarthy-Kennicott 

Museum to develop Museum as a 

visitor contact station and a place to 

display NPS artifacts.

•	 Develop General Store as a central 

exhibit area.

•	 Develop General Manager’s Office 

as a resource area for corporate/mine 

history.

•	 Research and restore original machines 

in Machine Shop.

•	 Restore and display rail car, loaded 

burlap bags, pulleys, and tracking scale 

and winch in the Sacking Garage.

McCarthy Kennecott Museum - NPS Carol Harding

Oar tram exhibit in Museum - NPS photo Carol Harding
50 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Implementation Plan & Exhibit Phases

Phase II: Design (To be accomplished)

•	 Schematic Design

By the end of schematic, a preferred 

alternative has been selected and 

major stories, exhibit elements, and 

presentation techniques are illustrated 

and designed. 

•	 Design Development 

All major details of the project are 

integrated into coherent media 

presentations. Complex media 

elements are fully described. 

The exhibit’s physical structure 

and operation characteristics are 

established (detailed floor plan and 

elevations, graphics, text, AV, exhibits 

finalized).

•	 Production Documents

Technical drawings and specifications 

are completed, communicating 

details necessary for potential exhibit 

fabricators to understand, price, and 

begin to work on project.

Phases in Exhibit Development

Since there are many actions 

recommended, it is helpful to review the 

phases involved in exhibit development, 

which phases have been accomplished, 

and which phases have yet to be 

accomplished.

Phase I: Planning & Pre-design 

(Accomplished)

•	 Kennecott Programmatic Accessibility 

(Alaska Regional Office 2005).

•	 Kennecott Sign Guidelines (Alaska 

Regional Office 2005).

•	 Visitor Preferences for Interpretation 

in Kennecott (University of Alaska 

Fairbanks 2005).

•	 Interpretive Opportunities in 

Kennecott NHL - Vision Document 

(AldrichPears 2005).

•	 Interpreting Kennecott (WRST 

staff and Regional Office facilitated 

discussion by AldrichPears 2008).

•	 Concept Development Workshop 

and Plan (Ron Thomson 2011) builds 

on past work by NPS, provides a 

conceptual plan for the design and 

interpretation of Kennecott, and 

prepares a solid foundation for all 

work that follows.

Phase III: Fabrication & Installation of 

Interpretive Media

•	 Prepare and award production 

contract. Hold Post award meeting 

and Site Visit. Provide governmentfurnished reference materials. 

Contractor submits shop drawings, 

proofs, and samples for approval. 

Most exhibit elements are fabricated 

either in the contractor’s shop or by 

specialty subcontractors. NPS reviews 

and comments on exhibit fabricator’s 

submittals and participate in shop 

inspections.

•	 Delivery and installation of exhibits. 

Walk through inspection of completed 

work and develop punch list. 

Contractor submits maintenance 

manual, warranty manual, and trains 

staff.

•	 NPS initiates summative evaluation.

•	 NPS does completion reports and 

enters PMIS data.
National Park Service 51

Exhibit Workshop Participants 

PARTICIPANT TITLE ORGANIZATION

PARK SERVICE 

Carol Harding Exhibit Specialist NPS/WRST

Workshop Coordinator

Elizabeth Schafer Interpretive Specialist NPS/WRST

Local resident

Todd Stoeberl Chief of Interpretation NPS/WRST

Erica Edmonds Kennecott District Interpreter NPS/WRST

Stephens Harper Kennecott District LE NPS/WRST

Geoff Bleakley Park Historian/NEPA Specialist NPS/WRST

Greg Biddle Cultural Resource Manager NPS/WRST

Eric Veach Chief of Resources NPS/WRST

Jim Baker Kennecott Project Manager NPS/WRST

Bruce Rogers Environmental Planner NPS/WRST

Bonnie Campbell Seasonal Interpreter NPS/WRST

Molly McCormick Fisheries Biologist NPS/WRST 

ALASKA REGION

Stephanie Stephens Senior Curator NPS/Alaska Region

Lynn Grams Wrangell Program Manager National Park Conservation 

Asso.
52 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Exhibit Workshop Participants

NPS PARTNERS TITLE ORGANIZATION

& LOCAL 

COMMUNITY

Ben Shaine President Friends of Kennicott

local resident

Jeremy Pataky Executive Director Wrangell Mts. Center

John Rice Treasurer, local resident McCarthy Museum

Mark Vail President McCarthy Area Council

local resident

Wayne Marrs Owner, local resident St. Elias Alpine Guides

Jessica Speed Board member Friends of Kennicott

local resident

Marie Thorn Maintenance, local resident NPS/WRST

Ron Simpson Local historian/author Ahtna Elder

Margo Higgins Phd Environmental studies Local resident

Shawn Olson Instructor, Alaska Wildlands Studies Wrangell Mts. Center

Sunny Cook President, local resident McCarthy Museum

FACILITATORS

Ron Thomson Interpretive Planner Ron Thomson 

Workshop Facilitator 12331 Camilla St.

Whittier, CA 90601

Brent Ward Exhibits Designer Riggs Ward Design

2315 W. Main St.

Richmond, VA 23220

Geoffrey Wyatt Graphics Designer Wyatt Design

307 Clancy Street

Helena, MT 59601
National Park Service 53

Exhibit Workshop Participants

Concept Plan Review Team 

Name Title Organization

Carol Harding Exhibit Specialist, Project Lead NPS/WRST

Elwood Lynn Acting Superintendent NPS/WRST

Todd Stoeberl Chief of Interpretation NPS/WRST

Bruce Rogers Planner NPS/WRST

Greg Biddle Cultural Resource Manager NPS/WRST

Elizabeth Schafer Interpretive Specialist, Kennecott NPS/WRST

Logan Hovis Mining Historian, Kennecott NPS/Alaska Region

Steve Peterson Historic Architect, Kennecott NPS/Alaska Region

Ron Simpson Ahtna Elder Local historian 

Ben Shaine President Friends of Kennecott
54 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

There are Standards for four distinct, 

but interrelated, approaches to the 

treatment of historic properties—

preservation, rehabilitation, restoration, 

and reconstruction.

Preservation focuses on the 

maintenance and repair of existing 

historic materials and retention of a 

property’s form as it has evolved over 

time. (Protection and Stabilization 

have now been consolidated under this 

treatment.)

Rehabilitation acknowledges the need 

to alter or add to a historic property 

to meet continuing or changing uses 

while retaining the property’s historic 

character.

Restoration depicts a property at a 

particular period of time in its history, 

while removing evidence of other 

periods.

Reconstruction re-creates vanished or 

non-surviving portions of a property for 

interpretive purposes.

The Secretary of the Interior’s 

Standards for the Treatment of 

Historic Properties

The Secretary of the Interior’s Standards 

for the Treatment of Historic Properties 

are common sense principles in nontechnical language. They were developed 

to help protect our nation’s irreplaceable 

cultural resources by promoting 

consistent preservation practices.

The Standards may be applied to all 

properties listed in the National Register 

of Historic Places: buildings, sites, 

structures, objects, and districts.

The Standards are a series of concepts 

about maintaining, repairing and 

replacing historic materials, as well as 

designing new additions or making 

alterations. They cannot, in and of 

themselves, be used to make decisions 

about which features of a historic 

property should be preserved and 

which might be changed. But once 

an appropriate treatment is selected, 

the Standards provide philosophical 

consistency to the work.

Appendix 1 

Hospital - NPS photo Carol Harding
National Park Service 55

Visitor Preferences for Interpretation 

in the Kennecott Mill Town, Final 

Report (November 2005)

Kennecott Mines National Historic 

Landmark – Interpretive Opportunities 

Vision Document (AldrichPears 

Associates February 2006)

Kennecott Support Facilities Plan 

(July 2007) 

Interpreting Kennecott (WRST staff, 

facilitated by AldrichPears 2008)

Wrangell St. Elias National Park 

and Preserve Foundation Statement 

(September 2009)

Landmark Planning Documents

McCarthy Road Scenic Corridor Plan 

(November 1997)

Kennecott Interim Operations Plan for 

National Historic Landmark (2001)

Kennecott Mill Town Cultural 

Landscape Report (2001)

Kennecott Mines National Historic 

Landmark – Sign Guidelines (Alaska 

Regional Office November 2005)

Kennecott Mines Support Facility 

Plan, Environmental Assessment 

(August 2005)

WRST Long Range Interpretive Plan 

(September 2005)

WRST Programmatic Accessibility, 

Kennecott District (Alaska Regional 

Office April 2005)

Appendix 2
56 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Abandoned or re-used furnishings, 

tools, equipment, and building materials

Natural features, flora, and fauna 

within and adjacent to Kennecott

Natural processes that shaped 

Kennecott such as glaciation, flooding, 

seasonal change, weather, and climate 

Viewsheds

Intangibles Associated with the 

Landmark

These intangibles were used to link the 

fact-based significance statements with 

the primary stories identified as park 

themes.

Change over time, succession, dynamic 

environment, natural processes: 

glaciation, flooding, climate change

Layers of history, use, abandonment, 

re-use/resettlement

Juxtaposition of humans and nature

Tangible and Intangible Resources

Tangible Features of Kennecott

Mill and mine structures including 

mine shafts and tramlines

Industrial noise

Remnant of the railroad to Kennecott

Trails throughout the area including 

those to the mines

Wagon Road between Kennecott and 

McCarthy

Kennecott Cemetery

Private and public lands and evidence 

of preservation and/or use

Communities, residents, workers, and 

managers of Kennecott before, during 

and since operation

Personal accounts and photos of life, 

work, and events at Kennecott

Kennecott corporate records, 

documents, and photos

Appendix 3

Perseverance in high-energy 

environment, environment challenges

Loneliness, isolation

Communities, diversity, class 

distinctions, families, daily life

Capitalism, global demand for copper, 

corporate management, labor history

Innovation, re-use of resources, 

extraction of resources, environmental 

policies 

Intangible

Nonmaterial: lacking material 

qualities, and so not able to be 

touched or seen.

Encarta World English Dictionary
National Park Service 57

More recently, following the transfer of 

the surface estate to the Great Kennicott 

Land Company—the company that 

subdivided the surface estate and sold lots 

to the public—the two spellings were used 

casually and interchangeably by some. 

To others it became a symbol of differing 

visions of the future of the mining site. 

When the National Park Service acquired 

substantial parts of the site, the e spelling 

was adopted although there has been 

some continuing public and private 

confusion between the two names.

The two spellings refer to two very different 

places and concepts. To impose order in 

a broad sense, references to Kennicott 

with an i are linked to the natural history 

of the area while those to Kennecott with 

an e address the human history. Thus, the 

basic rule can be simplified as i for “ice” 

and e for “everything else.” Of course, ice 

means glaciers, rivers, and river valleys, 

and “everything else” refers to the works 

of man. This convention is reflected in 

the official designation of the area as 

the Kennecott Mines National Historic 

Landmark.1

1. See Donald J. Orth. Dictionary of Alaska Place Names, 

US Geological Survey Professional Paper 567 (Washington: 

USGPO, 1967), p. 510.

A Note on the Name

“Kennicott” does not equal “Kennecott.” 

“Kennicott” and “Kennecott” are the 

correct names for two different but closely 

associated places and things. 

Kennicott with an i refers to the Kennicott 

Glacier and River named in 1899 by the 

U.S. Geological Survey in honor of Robert 

Kennicott, a pioneer Alaskan explorer. 

Kennecott with an e refers to the mining 

company that took its name from the 

Kennicott Glacier, but for some unknown 

reason spelled the name differently. 

The change occurred early in the history 

of the mines, perhaps as early as 1901. In 

any event, the Kennecott Mines Company 

was in operation as a legal entity in 

1906. Bear in mind, the investors in the 

company had more interest in what the 

company owned than in how the name 

was spelled. In 1908, a U. S. Post Office 

was established at Kennecott. To confuse 

things, the name on the railway depot 

read “Kennicott” in 1918. In the late 

1950s, twenty years after the mines closed, 

the United States Geological Survey 

reverted to the Kennicott spelling for the 

community beside the glacier. 

Appendix 4

Mt. Blackburn and Root Glacier – NPS photo by Carol 

Harding
58 Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

Mill and trestle 1912 - Bleakley Coll.