Today this is a state historical park that was first staked out for gold in 1906. ".... With a block of 83 mining claims, APC (Alaska-Pacific Consolidated Mining Company) became the largest producer in the Willow Creek Mining District. The claims covered more than 1,350 acres and included 27 structures. In its peak year, 1941, APC employed 204 men, blasted nearly a dozen miles of tunnels, and produced 34,416 ounces of gold worth $1,204,560; today $17,208,000. Twenty-two families lived in nearby Boomtown, with eight children attending the Territorial School in the new bunkhouse...." (info from the Independence Mine website)
In January 1951 the mine was shut down.