Neversweat Prospect: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Denali National Park, National Park Service
Dates
Year
2009
Citation
Ferreira, Samson Lee, 2009, Neversweat Prospect: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Denali National Park, National Park Service: Cultural Landscapes Program Alaska Regional Office Anchorage NPS Cultural Landscapes Program: Alaska Regional Office/CLI Database, v. 975498, 46 Pages.
Summary
The Neversweat Prospect (MMK-092) is located on the right bank of Eldorado Creek, a tributary of Moose Creek. The site is a landscape of the Kantishna Historic Mining District (KHMD). The KHMD is within the boundaries of Denali National Park and Preserve, at the end of the 92 mile Park Road near Wonder Lake. The Neversweat Prospect is a 4.3 acre historic site and contains a small collection of historic buildings and structures, small scale features and landscape features associated with lode mining. The extant features consist of one building (cabin), and 15 structures (three collapsed adits, one partially collapsed adit, one partially collapsed outhouse, a historic road, a historic trail, six rock retaining walls). There is one historic [...]
Summary
The Neversweat Prospect (MMK-092) is located on the right bank of Eldorado Creek, a tributary of Moose Creek. The site is a landscape of the Kantishna Historic Mining District (KHMD). The KHMD is within the boundaries of Denali National Park and Preserve, at the end of the 92 mile Park Road near Wonder Lake. The Neversweat Prospect is a 4.3 acre historic site and contains a small collection of historic buildings and structures, small scale features and landscape features associated with lode mining. The extant features consist of one building (cabin), and 15 structures (three collapsed adits, one partially collapsed adit, one partially collapsed outhouse, a historic road, a historic trail, six rock retaining walls). There is one historic archeological deposit at the site as well. The site is significant for its association with the historic mining district. The period of significance is 1930 to 1969. Only a few of the site features maintain individual integrity (cabin, trail, rock retaining walls). However, collectively all the features contribute to the historic character of the site and represent a complete and well preserved example of a small-scale lode mining site from the period of significance. The Neversweat Prospect is a superb example of a small-scale lode mining site in the Kantishna Historic Mining District (KHMD), located within Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska. The period of significance for this property is 1930 to 1969, it is significant for its contribution to the broad patterns of local history. The period of significance extends beyond the 50 year mark to 1969, the year the property was acquired by Jim Fuksa. It is representative of one of the few active lode-mine operations in the Kantishna district whose operation spanned both the pre WWII era and the post WWII era. For many years, it was the only operational lode-mine within the entire district. While very little, if any ore was sent for processing form this prospect, it is nevertheless an important site from an era of district development with few representative examples. The site contributes to the broad trends of local history in that it is representative of a later era of mining in the Kantishna Mining District. The era is that period just before World War II to around the 1970s, when park development was underway and boundary expansions were being contemplated, yet active mining was still taking place within the district. Although the era is sometimes referred to as a ‘golden age’ of mining in the Kantishna District by historians, there are few representative examples remaining from it. With its extant historic buildings and structures, a historic trail and road segment, and other features from the period of significance, the Neversweat Prospect is an excellent example of a small-scale lode mining site from this era. While a few other sites of this type exist, such as the Alpha Ridge site and the Slate Creek site, the Neversweat Prospect is exceptional in its level of preservation and completeness.
