Editing Kemmerer, Wyoming (section)

==History==
Explorer [[John C. Frémont]] discovered coal in the area during his second expedition in 1843. The [[Union Pacific Coal Company]] opened the first underground mine in 1881 after construction of the [[Oregon Short Line Railroad]] from Granger to Oregon.<ref>{{cite web|title=Historic Kemmerer |work=Wyoming Tales and Trails |url=http://www.wyomingtalesandtrails.com/kemmerer.html |access-date=March 7, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060327033652/http://www.wyomingtalesandtrails.com/kemmerer.html |archive-date=March 27, 2006 }}</ref>

Patrick J. Quealy (1857–1930) immigrated from [[Ireland]], founded Kemmerer as an "independent town" in 1897 when he was vice-president of the Kemmerer Coal Company, located {{convert|6|mi|km}} south of the original townsite.  He named the company and town after his financial backer, Pennsylvania coal magnate Mahlon S. Kemmerer (1843–1925). In 1950, the operation converted to strip mining and became the world's largest open pit coal mine. In 1980 the Kemmerer Coal Co. was sold to the [[Pittsburg & Midway Coal Company]], a subsidiary of the Westmorland Coal Company.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maio |first=Pat |date=September 13, 2024 |title=Kemmerer Coal Mine Sold To Southern California Real Estate Company |url=https://cowboystatedaily.com/2024/09/13/kemmerer-coal-mine-operation-sold-to-southern-california-real-estate-company/ |access-date=2024-09-15 |website=Cowboy State Daily |language=en}}</ref> The pit remains in operation with an annual output of about 5 million [[short tons|tons]].

Quealy sold lots in the townsite rather than lease them, which permitted the establishment of independent businesses. The company's subsidiary, Frontier Supply Company, provided electricity by utilizing a used $1,150 generator acquired in Utah. In Wyoming, he and his wife became active in Democratic Party politics and in St. Patrick's Church, for which the company donated land.

Quealy was the founding president of the First National Bank, established in 1900. Kemmerer Savings Bank was founded in 1909.  Its president Asbury D. Hoskins was manager of the Blyth-Fargo-Hoskins Company, and was elected Wyoming state treasurer in 1919.

The [[J. C. Penney]] company store was founded in Kemmerer in 1902.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kemmerer.org/jcpenney/ |title=JCPenney Store / Home |publisher=City of Kemerer Wyoming |access-date=July 19, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120715144605/http://kemmerer.org/jcpenney |archive-date=July 15, 2012 }}</ref>

[[TerraPower]] selected Kemmerer, Wyoming as the site for a 345 MWe reactor using a [[Molten-salt reactor|molten salt]] energy storage system. The reactor can temporarily boost output to 500 MWe, enabling the plant to integrate with renewable resources.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wang |first=Brian |date=2022-08-30 |title=Korea Invests in Bill Gates TerraPower |work= NextBigFuture.com |url=https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2022/08/korea-invests-in-bill-gates-terrapower.html |access-date=2022-09-26 |language=en-US}}</ref> 
In June 2024 the site broke ground, beginning preparation for the as-yet unapproved reactor.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McDermott |first=Jennifer |date=2024-06-10 |title=In Wyoming, Bill Gates moves ahead with nuclear project aimed at revolutionizing power generation |url=https://apnews.com/article/bill-gates-nuclear-terrapower-wyoming-climate-change-electricity-23176f33200b22b9ede7f4ccf4f2ec3b |access-date=2024-06-11 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref>  
It is estimated to cost $4 billion, with the DOE supplying half of that cost, and [[Bill Gates]] contributing $1 billion of his money.<ref name=NPR_2024-06-14 >{{ cite news | url=https://www.npr.org/2024/06/14/nx-s1-5002007/bill-gates-nuclear-power-artificial-intelligence | title=Bill Gates is going nuclear: How his latest project could power U.S. homes and AI | last1=Manuel | first1=Obed | last2=Innskeep | first2=Steve | work=[[NPR]] | date=2024-06-14 | quote=Gates has invested $1 billion into a nuclear power plant that broke ground in Kemmerer, Wyo., this week. The new facility, designed by the Gates-founded TerraPower, will be smaller than traditional fission nuclear power plants and, in theory, safer because it will use sodium instead of water to cool the reactor’s core. TerraPower estimates the plant could be built for up to $4 billion,... }}</ref>