Copper on the Creek: Reclaiming an Industrial History

by Curtis Cravens with Tina Chiu, Katherine Gray, and Paul Parkhill
Color Illustrations

ISBN 0977274233
$10.00
Booklet, color photos, 40 pages
Originally published in November 2000 by Place in History. Reissued by Furnace Press in November 2005.

Closed for years, the Phelps Dodge refinery was located on Newtown Creek in West Maspeth, Queens, until its recent dismantling. 

Copper on the Creek provides an interdisciplinary glimpse into the history of the refinery, and examines plans for redeveloping the site. It also addresses a variety of other topics, including the economic, political, and environmental impact of industrialization and subsequent deindustrialization on America's urban areas.  Geared to a general audience, it also contains information useful to community representatives concerned about the disposition of the site.

This richly illustrated 40-page booklet is the fruit of a year-long collaboration between Place in History and Laurel Hill Works. Laurel Hill Works was founded by Curtis Cravens, a Brooklyn-based photographer who has performed extensive research on the site over the course of the last five years.