To Move A Mountain
Railroads and mining in Utah's Bingham Canyon
By Don Strack
This page was last updated on October 3, 2008.
A narrative history of railroads and mining in Utah's Bingham Canyon, with bibliography and research notes.
- Years of Discovery, to 1863 – A narrative history of the early years of discovery in Bingham Canyon, using Daughters of Utah Pioneers and other sources, including H. H. Bancroft, Orson Whitney, B. H. Roberts, Edward Tullidge, and Stenhouse.
- Gold and Silver Era, 1863-1900 – A narrative history of the of the railroad and mining activities in Bingham Canyon during the years that gold and silver were being mined, including history of the pioneering Bingham Canyon & Camp Floyd narrow gauge railroad, and the narrow gauge mule tram.
- Copper Era, 1900-1914 – A narrative history of the railroad and mining activities in Bingham Canyon after copper began to be mined in larger quantities. Coverage includes the construction of the Copper Belt Railway to replace the original mule tramway, and the consolidation of the mining companies into the United States Mining, Boston Consolidated, and Utah Copper companies.
- Copper Era, 1914-1981 – A chronology history of the events and dates of railroad and mining activity in Bingham Canyon in the years of 1914 to 1981 when Kennecott was sold to SOHIO and British Petroleum.
- Copper Era, 1981 to today – A chronology history of the events and dates of railroad and mining activity in Bingham Canyon in the SOHIO and BP years after 1981, to Rio Tinto's ownership today.
- Bibliography
Salt Lake Valley Smelters – A narrative history of the smelters located in the Salt Lake Valley, including those of the pioneer era, from 1867, to the famous smelter case that closed all but the lead smelters at Midvale and Murray. The others were either consolidated at either Garfield or Tooele, or closed altogether.
Utah's First Mining Company — Minutes of the September 1863 meeting for the organization of the Jordan Silver Mining Company, Utah's first mining company.
General Patrick Conner Letters — Transcripts of letters from General Patrick Conner about mining in Utah.
Kennecott Utah Copper Diesel-Electric and Electric Locomotives – A full all-time roster of Kennecott's diesel and electric locomotives.
Utah Copper Steam Locomotives – A full all-time roster of Utah Copper's and Bingham & Garfield Railway's, steam locomotives.
Bingham Canyon Railroads and Steam Shovels — An article from Salt Lake Mining Review in October 1911.
Wikipedia entry for Bingham Canyon.
Kennecott Corporation History — A 1999 history of Kennecott Corporation, lifted from International Directory of Company Histories.
The Trains That Moved A Mountain — Blair Kooistra's article from the March 1989 issue of Train magazine. (presented here with author's permission)
