Big Rock Point was named a Nuclear Historic Landmark by the American Nuclear Society in 1991. On February 26, 1992 it officially became the oldest operating nuclear plant in the United States. On June 29, 1993 Big Rock Point became the longest running nuclear plant in the country, surpassing the record of 30 years and 92 days held by the Yankee plant at Rowe, Massachusetts. It was the fifth commercial plant to be built, the twenty-second to be shut down. Sixteen others had come and gone in its lifetime. After thirty-five years of service, Big Rock Point was closed for economic reasons. The decommissioning commenced immediately after its last day, August 29, 1997. Gradually the buildings were decontaminated where necessary, stripped, and demolished. The reactor vessel was removed on August 15, 2003, placed in a specially designed container, and hauled by train to Barnwell, South Carolina where it was buried under forty feet of earth.