This demonstration of the Navajo Mine's newest enormous dragline appealed to crowds at the dedication of the Four Corners Power Plant on June 21, 1963. NAVAJO In 1953 Utah Construction began negotiations in Window Rock, Arizona, with the Navajo Nation to mine steam coal from massive reserves estimated at one and one-half billion tons. "The Navajo Nation was interesting because the Navajo tribe had certain unique rights, as if it was an independent nation," Littlefield explained. "Still, all of the actions of the Navajo Nation were subject to approval by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which was part of the Department of the Interior. We had to negotiate with the chairman of the tribe and members of the tribal counsel." Mining operations began in October 1962. "1 have been told that the best dragline operators we ever found, from all over the world, were Navajo Indians," Littlefield related. "They can produce more output on a dragline than anyone else. That's partly because they have great hand-eye coordination. Secondly, the Navajos had the ability and patience to sit there and do the same task all day long without having their interest flag or their attention waver." The company built the Four Corners Power Plant and attracted clients, including the Arizona Public Service Company, the Public Service of New Mexico, and Tucson Oil and Gas. Electrical utilities in California and Texas soon became clients, as well. Steam coal requires a water supply to cause condensation. The company purchased water rights and excavated a cooling pond, named Lake Morgan in honor of a former tribal chairman. The tribe assumed management of the lake as a recreational facility for water sports and fishing. Littlefield and Senior Vice President Alexander (Bud) Wilson participated in the dedication of the Four Corners Power Plant on June 21, 1963. The line of buses streaming into the desert also transported utility executives, politicians, beauty queens, tribal leaders, and local Navajos. The Navajo mine, the Four Corners Power Plant, and the railroad connecting them are still in operation.