Southcentral Community: Kennicott/ McCarthy
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McCarthy, the ghost town of Kennicott, the abandoned Kennecott Copper Mine and Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve are a package deal. Each in and of itself is worth the effort to get there and getting there is part of the adventure. The road to McCarthy is a combination of the Edgerton Highway and McCarthy Road, a 92-mile route that ends at the footbridge across the Kennicott River. One more mile down the road reaches McCarthy and then into the heart of the largest park in the U.S. National Park System.
The Edgerton Highway is a 32-mile, fully paved road off the Richardson Highway, about 80 miles north of Valdez and 40 miles south of Glennallen. The Edgerton Highway ends at the small community of Chitina and from there, the 60-mile McCarthy Road begins, ending at the Kennicott River. This dirt road calls for a leisurely pace, which is just as well because the scenery is spectacular.
McCarthy is a scenic and funky little town with a summertime population of 70. Once you park at the end of the road, cross the Kennicott River on the footbridge, then follow the road to the McCarthy River, which is also crossed on a footbridge. On the other side the road leads half a mile to the McCarthy and Kennicott Museum, an old railroad depot that features old photographs and a few mining artifacts dating back to the mining days. From the museum the right fork leads into the town of McCarthy and the left fork to the main road to Kennicott.
Kennicott was a company town, self-contained and respectable. McCarthy, on the other hand, was created in the early 1900s for the miners as a place of 'wine, women and song,' with saloons, restaurants, hotels, pool halls, stores, a newspaper and a red light district. A number of the buildings are still in use and listed on the National Register of Historical Places.
After the discovery of the richest copper deposits ever uncovered in 1900, the Kennecott Copper Corporation was formed (spelled differently that the town, river and glacier due to a clerical worker's misspelling). First a railroad was built 196 miles through the wilderness from Cordova at a cost of $23 million. Next the company town of Kennicott was built, a sprawling red-painted complex that included offices, the crushing mills, bunkhouses for the workers, company stores, a theater, wooden tennis courts and school, all perched on the side of a mountain above Kennicott Glacier.
From 1911 until 1938 the mines operated 24 hours a day, produced 591,000 tons of copper and reported a net profit of more than $100 million. In November 1938, faced with falling world prices for copper, an uncertainty of how long the veins would play out and, most of all, a possible labor strike, the company managers decided to close the operation. They made the decision one night and the next morning told the workers the mine was shut down and that they could stay or leave but that in two hours the last train out of Kennicott was leaving. The disgruntled miners left in what has to be one of the greatest exoduses from a town in the U.S.
With the exception of two large diesel engines, everything was left behind and Kennicott was a perfectly preserved slice of U.S. mining history. Unfortunately, when the railroad bed was converted to a road in the 1960s, Kennicott also became the biggest help-yourself hardware store in the country. Locals were taking windows, doors and wiring while visitors were picking the town clean of tools, spikes and anything they could haul away as a souvenir.
Despite the pillage, Kennicott is still an amazing sight. The mill, where the ore was crushed and the copper concentrated, towers above the surrounding buildings and still has tram cables leading up to the mountain miners. The rest of the buildings, including bunkhouses, train depot, worker's cottages and power plant, sit perched above Kennicott Glacier and surrounded by incredible peaks.
In June of 1998, the National Park Service acquired many of the significant buildings and lands of the historic mining town. The old buildings are in various stages of collapse and disrepair. Plans for improving safety around the mill site and making it stable are underway. At this time, the doors of the buildings are locked. There is a local guide company that currently has permission to lead groups through the safer parts of the buildings. Feel free to explore the outside of buildings, but remain aware of the hazards that exist.
McCarthy and Kennicott are amazing places by themselves; where they are located is ultimate Alaskan wilderness. The crown jewel of parks, rugged and wild Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve boasts the second tallest peak in the U.S., Mt. St. Elias at 18,008 feet (only 2,312 feet less than Mt. McKinley). The park actually contains 9 of the 16 highest peaks in the United States. The park also boasts the largest concentration of glaciers on the continent and includes Malaspina (larger than Rhode Island), Hubbard Glacier and Kennicott Glacier located below its namesake.
Chitistone and Nazina canyons have both been described at exceeding the scale of Yosemite Valley. Chitistone Canyon features a spectacular, 300-foot waterfall and the lower canyon has sheer walls rising 4,000 feet above the river. Wildlife includes brown and black bear, moose, caribou, mountain goats, Dall sheep and a slew of smaller creatures. The rivers and lakes are teaming with fish.
Fishing, hiking, backpacking, camping, rafting, kayaking, flightseeing, glacier viewing and watching the wildlife are why folks come here. Outfitters, guides and tours are available in or through McCarthy. The National Park Service maintains a Visitor Center at the Train Depot in Kennicott as well. There really are no stoplights, more wildlife than people and more glaciers than cars.
Details
Photo By: Matt Hage
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The ruins of the 1900-era Kennicott copper mine in Wrangell-St Elias National Park
Population: 90
Location: McCarthy lies 61 miles east of Chitina off the Edgerton Highway. It is on the Kennicott River at the mouth of McCarthy Creek. Kennicott is 5 miles up the road from McCarthy.
Access: By road on the Edgerton Highway/McCarthy Road, air taxi from Glennallen and Chitina, van service between Glennallen and McCarthy, shuttles service between McCarthy and Kennicott.
Accommodations: Two lodges, one hotel, cottages, bed and breakfasts, camping on the west side of Kennicott River, restaurants, guided tours, flightseeing, guided glacier hikes, rafting and most services.