Grand Canyon National Park in Coconino County, Arizona — The American Mountains (Southwest)

Orphan Mine

Grand Canyon

— National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior —

Orphan Mine Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Denise Boose, December 9, 2016

1. Orphan Mine Marker

Inscription. Something unexpected once stood on the rim in front of you. A steel headframe towered over a mineshaft that dropped 1,500 feet (460 m) to one of the richest uranium mines in the United States. From 1956 to 1969, miners extracted ton after ton of uranium ore from this 20-acre (8 ha) claim.

The mine goes back to 1891, when Dan Hogan-an orphan-discovered copper here. Hogan built a daring trail to his Orphan Mine Lode 1,000 feet (330 m) below you. He gave up mining in 1936 and built a lodge and trading post on the rim, which, in 1947, became Grand Canyon Inn. Business quickly changed when uranium ore was confirmed here in 1951.

I gazed in wonderment at a mine existing at the very rim of the Grand Canyon.
Maurice Castagne, 1958-1969 Mine Superintendent

Erected by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1956.

Location. 36° 4.359′ N, 112° 9.108′ W. Marker is in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, in Coconino County. It is on Hermits Road, on the right when traveling east. Located

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at Powell's Point. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: Hermits Road, Grand Canyon AZ 86023, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Flagstaff & High Country

and in Hopi.

It is also in the American Southwest,

in the Mountain West,

in Colorado Plateau,

and at the Four Corners.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Early Explorer (within shouting distance of this marker); Colonel Claude Hale Birdseye (approx. 0.2 miles away); Kolb Studio (approx. 1.1 miles away); Hermit Road (approx. 1.1 miles away); Historic Kolb Studio (approx. 1.1 miles away); Bright Angel Trail (approx. 1.2 miles away); Mules and the Canyon (approx. 1.2 miles away); Grand Canyon Village (approx. 1.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Grand Canyon National Park.

Photographed by Denise Boose, December 9, 2016

2. Orphan Mine Marker

Photographed by Denise Boose, December 9, 2016

3. Orphan Mine Marker

The Hummingbird Trail to Dan Hogan's Orphane Mine, 1913

Photographed by Denise Boose, December 9, 2016

4. Orphan Mine Marker

Rim view with steel headframe over mineshaft, 1978

Photographed by Denise Boose, December 9, 2016

5. Orphan Mine Marker

The uranium mine tunnel on the left, Dan Hogan's copper mine on the right.

Credits. This page was last revised on November 2, 2019. It was originally submitted on October 7, 2017, by Denise Boose of Tehachapi, California. This page has been viewed 1,063 times since then and 91 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on October 7, 2017, by Denise Boose of Tehachapi, California. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.