In 1994, Usibelli Coal Mine began a project to collect oral histories and memorabilia from people who lived and worked at the mine and in nearby communities during the 1940s and 1950s. The company operates coal mining in Alaska and supplies six Interior Alaska power plants with coal. Usibelli Coal Mine was instrumental in initiating the Healy Clean Coal Project that was designed to demonstrate a different type of coal combustion and emission technology that when proven, could be used to retrofit coal plants around the world. The United States Department of Energy selected the project for matching funds under the federal Clean Coal Technology program. Usibelli Coal Mine was founded in 1943 by Emil Usibelli and incorporated in 1948. The company is located within the Alaska Range near the town of Healy.