The World's Greatest Lead & Zinc Mining
District As Seen Through The Camera
The Picher, Oklahoma field at peak production during the 1920sPicher was an industrial giant when this and the following photo was taken. Lead and zinc mining was the number one industry in Oklahoma and Ottawa County was the only county in Oklahoma where these minerals were mined. This photo was taken from Blue Mound in Kansas and looks southwest over Picher. The road in the distance is probably the state line road. It was an incredible time for the area and something we will never see again. This picture, which is part of the above picture, shows a view looking more to the west from Blue Mound. I believe that the mine in the foreground is the Blue Mound mine and mill. Notice all the miner's houses that are all identical to one another. Shacks and tents stand along a row of trees at the bottom of the hill. Virtually everything in the above two photos is now gone. Only the foundations of some of the mills and a few low chat piles remain in this area.
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4/24/02
