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Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada (PEPCON) Records (MS-00004)

Abstract

The Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada Records (1986-1989) are comprised of magazine articles, newspaper clippings, official reports, a profile of Jim Gibson, and a prospectus for a park named after Gibbons.

Finding Aid PDF

Date

1986-1989

Extent

0.30 Cubic Feet
0.42 Linear Feet

Related People/Corporations

Scope and Contents Note

The Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada Records (1986-1989) are comprised of magazine articles, newspaper clippings, official reports, a profile of Jim Gibson, and a prospectus for a park named after Gibbons.

Access Note

Collection is open for research.

Publication Rights

Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish.

Biographical / Historical Note

The Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada, built by Fred Gibson, Sr. and two partners, began operating in 1958. The plant produced ammonium perchlorate, an oxidizer used in National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) space shuttle and the defense industry's Titan missile programs. The plant was built just southeast of Las Vegas, Nevada near the city of Henderson, Nevada, where Gibson's son James (Jim) served as Mayor from 1997 to 2009. Inexpensive hydro-power from nearby Hoover Dam and the dry climate was ideal for handling and storage of the product.

On May 4, 1988, a series of explosions rattled the plant and surrounding area. Company officials estimated about 4,500 tons of ammonium perchlorate were in the plant at the time of the explosion. A nearby natural gas pipeline was ruptured by the explosions, which resulted in large flames that were visible for miles. Two employees were killed and more than 300 were injured.

After the explosion, the plant moved to Iron County in Southern Utah and was renamed Western Electrochemical Company.

Source: http://www.clarkcountynv.gov/fire/Pages/PepconExplosion.aspx

Preferred Citation

The Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada (PEPCON), 1986-1989. MS-00004. Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.

Processing Note

Records were processed in 2016 by Joyce Moore.

Resource Type

Records

Collection Type

EAD ID

US::NvLN::MS00004

Finding Aid Description Rules

Describing Archives: A Content Standard
English