Statement of Significance (as of designation - June 23, 1986):
A vestige of an early 20th-century copper mining camp, 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. The camp is little changed since its 1938 closing.

Condition:
Ongoing maintenance needs due to lack of funding still plague this NHL.

The trestle is expected to be completed by October 2008. The restoration of the General Manager’s Office is nearing completion and several of the manager’s cottages have been restored for seasonal housing and interpretation.