Photo Galleries

NPS Abandoned Mineral Lands Pr...

67 Images

NPS Abandoned Mineral Lands Projects - photos of AML features before and after mitigations.

NPS AML Photos

21 Images

This photo set presents a sample of the wide variety of Abandoned Mineral Lands that occur in park units across the National Park System.

Sample AML Closures

11 Images

A variety of different methods are used in national parks to help reduce the dangers of abandoned mines.

AML Hazard Signs

19 Images

The following is a gallery of AML Signs - used to prohibit access at AML sites and warn the public of safety hazards.

Mescal Historic Mining Distric...

17 Images

The Mescal Historic Mining District was a small-scale producer of tungsten and tin in the Mojave Desert, and produced tin for domestic World War II stockpiles. Due to the temporary nature of mining activity on the site, some of the features have deteriorated, but the character and significance of the site remains strong. For more information about this area and the rest of the park, visit: www.nps.gov/moja/index.htm

Kennecott Mines National Histo...

12 Images

Images of the cultural landscapes within Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska

Kennecott Mines National Histo...

17 Images

Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark is located within Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. This landmark contains several copper ore mines and the mill town that was used to extract the copper from the ore. The Kennecott Corporation established and managed this area during the early 1900s.

Mining History

3 Images

Mining History

Mine Safety Photos

4 Images

Photos of mine safety procedures at Lake Mead National Recreation Area

Abandoned Mines Lake Mead NRA

12 Images

Photos of abandoned mines around Lake Mead NRA

Historic Quincy Mine

10 Images

Learn more about this mining giant with this gallery of select park images.

Brooklyn Mine Trail

3 Images

The Brooklyn Mine Trail follows an old forest road the the Brooklyn Mine site.

Glacier Mine, Wrangell-St. Eli...

12 Images

The Kennecott Mines are located on Bonanza Ridge, several thousand feet above the Kennicott and Root glaciers in Wrangell- St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Between 1900 and 1938, five distinct mines were developed at Kennecott, each with its associated surface camp: Bonanza, Jumbo, Mother Lode, Erie and Glacier. All of the mines are situated adjacent to a greenstone-limestone contact which defined the location of ore on Bonanza Ridge. Glacier Mine was constructed to support the extraction of the West Slide ore body, which unlike the Jumbo and Bonanza deposits, was formed by the erosion of extremely high grade ores in the Bonanza outcrop that slid downslope into the lateral moraine and ice mass of an alpine glacier, thus making the ore encased in glacial ice rather than loose in the scree. Notable exploratory work occurred in 1917 when two tunnels were driven to examine the extent and quality of the ore. A third tunnel was driven later to further define the ore body. These tunnels ran parallel to the lateral moraine and several crosscuts ran at right angles to determine the width of the deposit. Miner’s worked inside the glacier, drilling, blasting, and timbering tunnel walls as they would in rock. By 1918, a sufficient amount of ore was located to justify expenditures on the labor, materials, and equipment to remove it and construction began on a 5,000’ long aerial tramway as well as a loading and sorting station at the toe of the glacier. Glacier Mine was immediately put into production once the aerial tramway was completed in 1920. The future of the mine appeared promising as the February 1920 issue of Economic Geology reported Glacier Mine had been ‘explored by three tunnels from which several crosscuts had been run enabling the ore to be partially outlined and sampled.’ Allegedly, over 100,000 tons of ore had been developed by this time and further development was planned. Several artificial thawing experiments were conducted, but the increased cost of mining during the winter was too great for the return. As such, the mine was worked approximately three months out of the year, July through September, when the glacial ice melted sufficiently to release the ore. Eventually, drilling and blasting were abandoned in favor of using scrappers and winches on the surface to efficiently move ore from the mine to the sorting facilities below. By 1928, the ore was worked out of Glacier Mine and its equipment was relocated to support other operations at Kennecott after its closure. No further work was done at Glacier Mine thereafter. Although the Kennecott Mines were in operation for only a short period of time, they collectively produced over 4.6 million tons of ore valued at $200 million. Glacier Mine alone produced over 163,028 tons of ore and 3,526 tons of copper, contributing to the success of the Kennecott Mines.

Erie Mine, Wrangell- St. Elias...

15 Images

The Kennecott Mines are located on Bonanza Ridge, several thousand feet above the Kennicott and Root glaciers in Wrangell- St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Between 1900 and 1938, five distinct mines were developed at Kennecott, each with its associated surface camp: Bonanza, Jumbo, Mother Lode, Glacier, and Erie. All of the mines are situated adjacent to a greenstone-limestone contact which defined the location of ore on Bonanza Ridge. Although Erie was not the largest or richest of the Kennecott Mines, it produced over 56,941 tons of ore and 8,565 tons of copper between 1901 and 1937, and largely supported operations as the rich ore bodies in the Bonanza and Jumbo mines began to slowly diminish during the late 1920s and 1930s. Erie Mine briefly reopened after new ore bodies were discovered in June 1937 but closed before the year’s end as the discoveries were not as rich as hoped. Electricity was cut on October 14, 1937 and the personnel and equipment were moved to Bonanza Mine. In October 1938, the Kennecott Copper Corporation closed all mining operations on Bonanza Ridge and no further work was done at Erie Mine thereafter. Although the Kennecott Mines were in operation for only a short period of time, they collectively produced over 4.6 million tons of ore valued at $200 million.

Bremner Historic Mining Distri...

34 Images

The Bremner Historic Mining District is located approximately 30 miles southwest of the town of McCarthy in the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska. The District is a regionally significant gold mining landscape, discovered and developed in the early to mid-twentieth century during the Klondike Gold Rush and Great Depression eras. Encompassing approximately 14,000 acres in the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, south-central Alaska, the District occupies a mountain pass between the North Fork of the Bremner River and Monahan Creek in the Chugach Mountains. Significant elements of the Bremner Historic Mining District include an important placer mining site and associated camp sites, four discrete lode-gold mines, a mill site, a well preserved transportation network and numerous historic archaeological sites associated with placer and lode-gold mining. The period of significance for the Bremner Historic Mining District is 1901 through 1942. The ‘Maze’ site, which contains a campsite, an elaborate ditch system, and extensive piles of hand-stacked cobble, provides one of the best examples in the Park of non-mechanized, placer mining systems. The Yellow Band Mining Camp is one of the region’s most complete camps, containing not only the typical housing and office facilities, but also a sophisticated hydroelectric system which provided electricity to the entire valley, including the more remote mine sites. The Grand Prize, Sheriff, and Yellow Band Mines are all outstanding examples of remote, lode-gold mining operations, each containing a variety of buildings and structures associated with early to mid-century lode-gold mining operations. In addition all three sites have remnants of tramway systems that were used to transport men material and ore from the valley floor to the mine sites. The remote location of these three mining sites has played a significant role in the preservation of character and artifacts associated with them. They are all located approximately 2000 ft. above the valley floor, access is difficult and in some cases dangerous. As such few Park visitors make it to these sites, and as cultural resources they remain remarkably well preserved. The Lucky Girl Mill and Mine site contains an un-collapsed adit (sealed) and assay shed, as well as a collapsed mill structure. While the Lucky Girl Mill structure has been reduced to ruins by avalanches, its operating machinery remains largely intact, and in most cases in situ, providing the Park with a textbook example of the flow processes of early to mid-century load-gold quartz mills. The Bremner District is a historic vernacular landscape with exceptional historical integrity that preserves a broad spectrum of mining technologies and infrastructure, existing as standing structures, surface remains, isolated artifacts, and archaeological sites. In the absence of major disturbances, the District is an exceptional example of a small-scale mining landscape, rarely so well preserved.