Bingham Canyon

Bingham Canyon was once a thriving city tucked into a narrow canyon on the eastern flank of the Oquirrh Mountains in southwestern Salt Lake County, Utah. Copper development in the early twentieth century drove rapid growth, and the community reached a peak population of around 15,000 residents at its height.

The very success of the mines ultimately erased the town. By the mid-twentieth century, the expanding open-pit copper operation consumed the canyon itself, swallowing the city in the process. Today there is no townsite to walk through — the pit that replaced it stands as one of the most dramatic industrial landscapes in the American West, and visiting means viewing that excavation rather than any surviving historic structures.

For those drawn to industrial history and large-scale landscape photography, the overlooks above the pit offer a striking sense of scale. Access is tied to the operating mine, so visitors should confirm current public access arrangements before making the trip. Summers offer the most reliable conditions for a visit.