The old mining structure is located in Thaynes Canyon near Park City Mountain’s Thaynes Chairlift.
Its roof, built in 1937, collapsed under a record amount of snow in the winter of 2023.
On Wednesday, the Park City Historic Preservation Board approved an $18,000 grant to remove the collapsed roof, beginning the restoration of the building.
Local nonprofit Friends of Ski Mountain Mining History is leading the restoration project. This fall, the group will perform asbestos removal and stabilize the building’s walls to protect it from snow next winter. The goal is to have Thaynes Hoist House fully restored and roofed by 2026, when it could reopen for public tours.
Part of the Thaynes site was used for mining between 1939 and 1949 until a workers’ strike brought operations to a halt.
After the opening of Treasure Mountains – now Park City Mountain – the area was used for a “skier subway” that transported skiers from the Spiro Tunnel three miles to the ski slopes in Thaynes Canyon.
UTAH INTRODUCES A “SKI SUBWAY” – The New York Times in 1964.
Park City Municipal/Historical Society
Although the underground railway was unique, it was not ideal for ski days, according to Brian Buck of Friends of Ski Mountain Mining History.
“There weren’t very many skiers being carried up in the cage at the same time, so the line at the lift at the bottom must have been incredible,” Buck said.
The “Skier’s Subway” was shut down in 1969 after several years of operation. Some of the original subway cars can still be seen in the basement of the Park City Museum.
