Considering how fortunate we were to have beautiful weather the previous two days in Alaska, I didn’t mind the gloomy skies and some sprinkles during our tour of Kennecott Copper Mill.

The fourteen-story mill had an interesting history, and we saw it from top to bottom—literally. After hiking up a steep hill, we entered the mill from the fourteenth story and made our way down each one, climbing down ladders each time.

(For all photos, click on the image for a full screen view.)

Two of the big names in the partnership that developed the copper mine, mill, town, and railway to transport the copper were  J.P. Morgan and Daniel Guggenheim. Built between 1906 – 1911, the entire project was highly controversial. Political battles between conservationists and those having financial interests in copper were fought in President Theodore Roosevelt’s office at the White House. Taking into consideration the deep pockets of both Morgan and Guggenheim, it is easy to understand how they won out.

Meanwhile, the mines, employed by Greek and Scandinavian immigrants, were a horrible place to work. It was dark, dirty, freezing cold, and the work was dangerous. To add to the misery, the mill was isolated— a 45-minute tram ride each way, and the miners worked seven days a week.

At its peak in 1924, Kennecott was producing 10 to 12 million pounds of copper—enough to fill 10,000 rail cars—each year. What the workers didn’t know, it was the beginning of the end, because ore was no longer found as fast as it was extracted.

In 1932, the global copper market was hit by the Great Depression, and the mines closed until 1935. When they reopened, it was with fewer workers. The ore dwindled and production declined. In 1938, Kennecott was closed for good.

In the end, Morgan and Guggenheim’s $100 million investment returned $200 million. A net of $100 million? Not bad!

Following our tour and lunch back at the lodge, our group headed back to the “airport” for our flight back to Chitina where we met up with Bobby and the bus. This is the view of the mill and town from the plane:

Although the weather wasn’t as beautiful as it had been during our first flight, the scenery was still gorgeous.

This time, Kyle was our pilot, but we had the same plane and passengers:

We stopped at Majestic View Wilderness Lodge for dinner:

Wasilla, along the shore of Lake Lucille was our destination for the night.  

Next up: SEATTLE & ALASKA #10: ALASKA NATIVE HERITAGE CENTER, ANCHORAGE & SEWARD