| City/Town: • Picher |
| Location Class: • Church • Commercial • Disappearing Town |
| Built: • 1918 | Abandoned: • 2009 |
| Status: • Disappearing Town |
| Photojournalist: • Billy Dixon • David Linde • Johnny Fletcher • Darrell Powers |
Located eight miles north of Miami on U.S. Highway 69 in Ottawa County, Picher is Oklahoma’s most northeastern incorporated city. Its city limits adjoin the Kansas state line. In late 1913 the town developed around the lead and zinc ore strike on Harry Crawfish’s allotment. Picher’s name honored O. S. Picher, owner of the Picher Lead Company. Statewide newspapers reported that the town was born overnight. Picher incorporated in March 1918. It had a population of 9,726 in 1920, which peaked at 14,252 in 1926, at the height of mining. As mining activity decreased, the population dropped steadily to 5,848 in 1940 and to 2,553 in 1960.
Picher was the most productive mining field in the Tri-State Lead and Zinc District (Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri) and produced more than $20 billion in ore from 1917 to 1947. Over 50 percent of the lead and zinc metal consumed in World War I came from the Picher Field. During the mining boom years more than fourteen thousand men worked in its mines, and another four thousand worked in approximately fifteen hundred mining service businesses. Many of these workers commuted to work using an extensive trolley car system that ran all the way to Carthage, Missouri. In the subsequent years Picher could not attract new industry, because a majority of the real estate belonged to restricted Quapaw heirs and because the town had many mines distributed underneath the surface.
O. S. Picher provided the city’s first deep water well, thereby providing the beginning of a municipal water system. The leasing system employed for mining dictated that an ore reduction mill be built on each forty-acre tract. In 1927 there were 248 mills operating in the Picher Field, and this continued until the late 1930s when centralized milling resulted in mill consolidation. When lead and zinc mining finally ceased in 1967, pumping water from the mines ceased and they began to fill with water, accumulating 76,800 acre-feet of mine water under ground. This contaminated water began to seep from the mines in 1973. In 1983 the Picher area became part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Superfund Site program. With 1,400 mine shafts in the Picher area, 70 million tons of waste tailings, and 36 million tons of mill sand and sludge, environmental clean up was a monumental task.
In 2008, The EPA finished the clean up of the Superfund site. This was done by a mixture of buyouts, chat sales, on-site disposals, rural residential yard contamination cleanup, soil cleansing, and rural residential well sanitization. Overall totaling over one hundred and sixty million dollars before it was completed. Those who were willing to be bought out did so. Those who stayed behind were supplied with alternative ways to utilizing the wells that were contaminated. Additionally, chat that had once been piled on top of the soil was put back into the mines to support the land and reduce human exposure to lead dust.
After all of the work that was completed to make the town livable again, an F4 tornado cae through the town of Picher on May 10, 2008. The tornado tragically took the lives of six people and injured at least one-hundred and fifty others.
In May of 2009 The Picher-Cardin school systems hosted its final graduating class & on July 1st the 90 year old district closed its doors forever. Today, all that can be seen in the town is overgrown house foundations, and a few remaining buildings, which are now crudely spray painted as government property.
Other Links:
Fredas Cook, a long time resident, has put together a great database of history and pictures. For a lot of great information about Picher and Cardin, visit his site Here.
First Christian Church
Built: Status: Burned Down March 2017
http://www.newson6.com/story/5e35fbdd2f69d76f6202db75/fire-destroys-abandoned-church-in-picher
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[…] than a 100 years ago the town of Picher in Oklahoma was a mining boomtown producing more than $20 billion in lead and zinc ore from 1917 to […]
hehe
🙂
When was the tornado? My great grandmother, Ellen Teague was blown away in a tornado in 1942.
Skyler, where did you move to? Sorry you had to leave.
🙁
My birth name is Elizabeth Grace Garner, and I was born in Picher Dec 28, 1943. My brother, Charles Theodore Garner was also born in Picher, May 8, 1942. When our mom left, she took the train to Herlong, Ca, and changed our names so as not to be found by our biological father. The man who raised us was Wayne Allen Pratt. Nov 3, 1948 our youngest brother was born. His name was Wayne Joseph Pratt. When we started school, my brother and I went by Chuck and Patty Pratt. When Chuck was 18, he joined the NAVY. When I was 18, I joined the ARMY. It was then I found out my birth name, because I had to present my birth certificate to be in the military. When I was 19, Chuck came to WSMR, NM where I was stationed. He took me back to Picher, and introduced me to our grandparents. Charley and Elizabeth Garner. Then Chuck left. I had a week to visit with them, and found out a lot of things that answered a lot of unanswered questions I had. I got to meet so many families, and it was amazing! Chuck took after moms side of the family (Andertons), and I looked like my dad (Earl Leslie Garner). Long story short …. have kept up research on the sweet little town of Picher, and followed it's demise. How sad, how utterly sad. The almighty dollar took precedence over families, and homes, and businesses to support war!!! Herlong is still my "hometown", but Picher is in my heart.
My family and I lived in pitcher for a few years when my husband worked for the EPA cleaning up the area. I am from the northeast and I never met such nice welcoming people then the people I met in Pitcher. We lived in many areas in the US and I will never forget this wonderful town and it's people. Such a shame but it won't be forgotten
It actually looks like it was a nice little town. (Nicer than the one I grew up in around Western OK). The PBS documentary was really good. Shocking how those huge lead piles surrounded the town and the children there "couldn't learn". The craziest part were the old folks who refused to leave! I have to assume they were already brain damaged from the lead, because staying in a ghost town full of poison makes zero sense. Sure you have memories there, but make new ones somewhere else! :-O
y great grandmother's obituary appeared on the front page of a Picher Newspaper (?) The obit is very very old and the last line of the headline reads ….LEADER. Interesting comments from that obit state Olive Cully
took flight to the Heavenly Father at 1:45 pm….Mrs. Olive Cully came to Picher with her former husband, Mr. Avery, and when he died, as a young widow, she continued to look after their property and conducted a millinery store which she still operated at her death. After Avery's death,Olive married J. G. Cully who survived her, along with two daughters – Mrs. Dio Daily of Seammon, Kansas; and Mrs.J. N. Hankins of Birmingham, Al.; and a sister Mrs. Frank Nebel of Picher. The entire town closed for her funeral. She was a member of the First Methodist Church of Picher. She was buried in Marshfield, Mo. her former home. The funeral was held from their beautiful home on South Connel… Avenue and the flowers were the most profuse and beautiful ever attended at a Picher funeral. Olive was a member of the EnAvant Club, and the 500 Club of Picher. Other names mentioned in the obituary were: Mrs. N. E. Ritter, soloist; Rev. Glen Tilton and Rev. Wesley Poe.
I am only posting this for historical info or in case she had any relatives who might be interested in the early settlement of Picher.
[…] I don't think is accurate there may be more than this out there, but you can read this link: Picher,OK | Abandoned Oklahoma Reply With […]
[…] Ever hear of the ghost town, Picher, Oklahoma? […]
[…] Ever hear of the ghost town, Picher, Oklahoma? […]
just wanting to find out if the properties in picher are for sale?
Not from Picher, of even Oklahoma at all. But, it makes me sick to see you guys having to pull up stakes and leave. The whole area, from the photos looks sad from it happening. I really hope and pray that each and every one from there has gone on to become happy and successful in all of their endeavors.
I had a good friend who ran a junk store and later moved to Miami and worked at the college named Harry Kelso, If anyone has heard from him please let me know.
I can remember as a a young boy maybe six or seven in the late forty living in commerce ok I can remember playing in chat piles one time myself and another boy finding a hole like a cave in chat we went inside not very long didn't realize how dangerous this was I can remember the eagle pitcher mine just outside commerce had a tree overdrive back to main office my dad worked there he said the dust was to much for him so we moved back to indiana had uncles who worked more than thirty years in the mines was down in mine one time that was all I needed was very hard work one uncle lived ninety years have a lot of good memory of childhood in ok
They have this twon featured on Netflix show i beleive called “Abandoned” its a neat program.
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When i was young i would spend my summer's at my grandmother's house in Picher.she lived right next to the chat piles.This was in the 60's and early 70's.Her name was Mary Seliversmith.I have good memory's of Picher,Oklahoma.
[…] Picher,OK | Abandoned Oklahoma __________________ If left to itself, the government would remove what the Creator gave you. […]
i was born in picer in 1942 picher will always be my home town
Same year as my brother Charles Garner! His was May 8, 1942.
^_^
grew up in century, also known as douthat.. mom had a grocery store their for a few years. moved to picher in my 7th year of school. graduated in 1948. champion football year for picher high. i hope the spell check warning stays on this note. married the best gal in the area (cardin) and she still puts up with me, after , GREAT SCOTT!!!!! HAS IT BEEN 62 YEARS!!! HAVE 5 GRANDS AND 4 GREAT GRANDS. GUESS WHO
j.e.a. john edgar anderson BUD
My great grandfather lived in Douthat and G. grandmaw was blown away in a storm in 1942. My family were the Teague and ran a hotel for miners. Have you heard of the Teague family? Marian Parrish Watson in Texas
HI, WE just drove through pitcher on 2/8/13 .not knowing it was pitcher, it was erie in the best of discriptions , i looked at these pictures , i see on our news back when they had the tornado, i guess i didnt see when it became a gost town, they need to route the hwy around the place if its unsafe , my heart gose out to all the people that called pitcher home!!! so sad!!
I know a little on this community, My uncle, who was born in Picher around 1926, and my father with his other brother lived and went to school their. It was desolate times. Not much to eat and very little work for the people who lived there.
My grandfather who worked the mines there barely made ends meat to support the family. They stayed in Picher for a short time, then moved to California, his name was John T. Arthurs. I think the mines killed the community!
[…] also went offroad in the chat dunes of Picher, […]
Born and raised there and i miss it every day
Hoppy's son Steve was the first guy I ever met with the courage to come out of the closet when I lived in Picher. Back in the late 70's that was pretty much something you kept to yourself while living in a small town. He really inspired me to not be afraid of who or what I was. I guess if I have one thing in my life to be thankful for it was him.
I always will remember the good times I had growing up there. My friend Sadie Sexton and I were always together. We shared everything from cloths to boys just like sisters. I miss you Sadie as I will always miss Picher
I'm from Oklahoma and had never heard about Picher until they showed it on the tv show, "Life After People." It is the "Toxic Revenge" episode. I found it to be very interesting.
Seen sycamore trees growing wide spread, don't know if the goverment is smart enough to plant. They shed leaves, bark, and limbs making topsoil. Suppose to give off some chemical that helps the ozone.
Hi,My name is Paul and I am into history alot and I like to visit places like that.I mean that are ghost town like.But understandable it is considered private governmental property.and besides with the chances of illness why would anyone want to enter.Considering thats where they were born and raised
I grew up in Picher and graduated high school there in the early 70's. I miss my good friends Willard King and Royce Archer and the man who always took care of us and let us play in the back of his yard Mr. Harry Kelso. God Bless and keep you Harry you really taught me about be a man in every way. Other than that I was not to fond of Picher and pretty much was a loner after I ran over and killed a drunk one night.. My sister and parents remained in picher for years. Poor little Kelly she had everything against her. She was to small and wore braces and really kind of homely but she sure is one heck of sister and I love her dearly. I only wish she had moved on with her life and got of the town of Picher the way I did. I guess if you grew up in picher you would not be so into this town. It really was dead a long time ago and I am amazed the goverment gave us anything for the old shacks that were there. Heck the best homes in town were the old duplex and tri-plex goverment housing for the poor.
Looks like it's been almost a year since anyone posted on here. Just heard about the town on a tornado video and looked it up. Such a shame to see so much history gone in a flash. I'm from Biloxi, MS (St. Martin) and it still breaks my heart every time I go back to see the school where I attended and where my parents attended is no longer there. It was destroyed by hurricane Katrina along with a huge portion of the coast. I large part of my history disappeared in a matter of hours so I can understand how these families must feel.
My Grandpa William Evan Witten wa murdered by members of the Ma Barker gang in May 1933 in Picher, OK. I want to know more and where is he buried. Does anyone have any info.?
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&…
Looks like Fletcher Cemetery in Comanche County,Ok.
My Mom was born in 1934 (Bonnie Marie Jones) in Picher OK. Her Father and Mother name was Clarence and Pauline Jones. How can I find out any information on the family?
Nancy Glass
nancy_glass@msn.com
Nancy – My grandparents lived in Picher until lhey passed away. My grandfather worked in the bank and so did Pauline. I remember her because she worked with my Grandpa, Albert Brewer. I used to spend all of my out of school times with my grandparents and grandpa always took me with him to work. Not sure I have any pictures of them together or not. What I remember was how kind and how pretty she was. I don't have any specific information other than my memories from 50+ years ago. If you want to contact me please feel free to do so. You can reach me at arleta2@aol.com.
Ive been doin alot of research on the town of picher and i see alot of people saying that the police will not allow anyone into the town, but im not finding anything that indicates that it is condemmed. does anyone know if they would allow people to go there for documenting reasons?
I am really sorry for anyone who had historical ties to Picher, it is a completely devastating scene. I was driving back home to Texas from Savannah, MO 2 days ago, and I veered off the interstate a little bit onto US 69, and I saw it. I had read about it before, and I didn't know that there were rr tracks there dividing OK and KS. Once there, I immediately realized where I was, the piles of mining waste, and just a couple of dilapidated buildings, it was a scene that nightmares are made of. Stephen King's "The Stand" is the only story I can think of that captures any sort of resemblance to this kind of eerieness. I looked around and cried for the people that died in the tornado, and the people that had to move due to the environmental hazards. I looked around, and no one messed with me, because NO ONE was there. Hiroshima in OK, it's very real folks, sad!!
Crazy. I grew up a lil' ways up the road in Grove, OK and used to play baseball against Picher. My Pops has told me it used to be a fun little town back in the day. Sux 🙁
I just drove by there on 10/26/2011…I had an eerie feeling, but something told me there was love there and life lost. It looked like something had ripped through the town, and that any life left had just ran away. That was my impression. Because of that impression, I am doing research. I want to go back and just walk the streets. I would not disturb anything, but I think life calls up through the ground and I want to hear what it is saying…<3
did you ever end up going back?
There was love and lives both lost there. A tornado hit the town. It was said that one would never hit there cause of all the chat piles around. But one went right over the top of it. very sad. I went there for 2 yrs. My Aunt Jean lived there and died there long b4 the tornado hit and I call Picher,OK my home.
it just sad what has happen to the town
That face thing is really creepy.
My grandfather, Mark Larkin, was a mechanic in Picher back in the 60s(and since I’d never seen the town’s name spelled, I always thought it was “Pitcher.”)
Did anyone know my grandpa?
I’m so sorry for the loss of the town.
I believe your Grampa Mark worked for my Dad in his salvage in the early 60s. My Dad had his salvage and garage from 1961 till June 1967. The salvage was on west B street just short of the state line. I remember The Mark Larkin that worked for my Dad would buy me and my brothers, Snowball snack cakes at Cicil Norths station on Stale line Road. We would have to share them with Cicils monkey that he always had at the station.Or the Monkey would always go after Marks hair and pull it.. lol It always seemed so much fun watching him try to stay away from that monkey…In not real sure, but there is a chance that there might even still be a pic. or so of Mark in some of my dads old pics. from before our (big cave in) in 1967 where we lost everything. Do you know if your Grandpa ever mentioned being in the 67 mine cave in.If I`m remembering corectly Marks house was just at the turn in to our drive way.You can contact me at myhotrod64 at yahoo.com if you like and ill see if i might find out if there are any pics. in my Dads albums.
Thanks for the photos. My mom and her parents were from Picher; my grandfather worked in the mines from the 20s through the 60s. I hope to get down there myself soon to have a look around and take photos. Until then, your photos help fill in a lot of gaps. Thanks again.
That was in 1919
does anybody knom anything about Greenlesf Mining Co.?
My grandmother had 100 shares in that Co.,Is there any thing to it?
Like to know if there is money there.
I WAS BORN IN DOUTHAT OK…. MOVED TO MISSOURI AN THEN TO CALIF .. I WILL BE A CHAT RAT TILL THE DAY I DIE.. J W
I went to Picher today and let me tell you there is less and less of it. They were tearing down buildings left and right out there. By the end of the summer, I doubt anything is still standing. Tried to take all the pictures I could but I also stayed out of most of the buildings.
I wish there more pictures of the better days of Picher. I grew up there in the 60's and 70's. It was never Manhattan or Vail but, it was a neat town and in the winters when it snowed, the Chat Piles looked like snow covered mini-mountains. I was there after the big tornado and it was hard to recognize then, I don't even know if I would want to go back now and see the "Life After People" conditions.
Chat Rat forever
I feel for the families…
It’s such a sad story… You drive by and it kinda makes you want to stop and look around 🙁
I too use to live in Picher Ok with my first husband Tim Dewayne Sharbutt but now me and my daughter from my second marriage live in Joplin, Mo. believe me i may have missed the Picher tornado but didnt miss the Joplin one. Thank god me and my daughter survived but our apt complex was heavily damaged. If any of you know where John Harvey is he would be around my age which is 37 ive been looking for him…my email is sweetmelody74@hotmail.com. He took me to my junior prom in Miami Ok.
It's a sad thing to see ones hometown torn down and hauled away. I live in Joplin, Mo. now but, Picher, Ok. is my hometown! Always will be even if it's gone, Picher is alive in all of us that grew up there. I believe things could have been done to save Picher but, big brother had his way. I'll miss going there and seeing all the old buildings and places I played as a child and of course I miss ALL the people! My family and I go there at least twice a month to see how much more is gone, we've never had a problem with the police or anyone else for that matter. Before Hoppy passed away I use to go twice a week to talk to him about the Picher he knew growing up there. He had some awesome stories to tell. Long story short…..She may be gone but she will nevere be forgotten.
Did anyone know Elizabeth "Lizzie" BEdegrew Jones that ran a grocery store in Picher with her husband William Jones? Later her son Bert Luther ran the store. Lizzie died in 1946. Does anyone have any pictures of the original "Main Street"?
We went to Picher today and there weren't any police/security to be found patroling the area. The only ones we noticed seemed to reside at the old high school when we drove by. And for the couple hours we drove around their vehicles never moved. There were a couple of roads that had closure signs so we didn't press our luck but for the most part a lot of the older houses by the school were wide open and FULL of stuff. Its like they got up one morning, walked out the door and never came back. Super weird. But the entrances into the high school were all blocked by concrete barriers and I wasn't going to test out the agility of the security that was on the premises.
do they allow people there to do documentation
I worked on the cleanup, testing the soils for lead for 4 years. We should all be proud of the work our government did cleaning up the school yards, public grounds, homesteads and tribal sacred places in the surrounding area around Picher. The people of Picher paid a heavy price for providing more than half of the lead and zinc for World War 1 and beyond. My team and I were happy to do this tough work and make life better for the next generation of children in this area, and I have fond memories of the people and the place.
Did you know that a spinoff of Eagle-Picher still in the area makes Boron solutions, a neutron regulator for European nuclear reactors?
Clean up? What clean up? Thank you for trying but there will be no next generation there. Picher is still a major source of contamination, it's still poising the water supplies of other towns and still has miles of chat piles. There was very little clean up. The government walked away.
yah there is a dirt road close by playing with RC cars there just on the outside of picher helicopter was flying over head thought nothing of it then ottawa county police showed up said we had 5 minutes to leave or we would be arrested wtf since when is it agaisnt the law to play with RC cars that close to picher on a dirt road? the ottawa police followed us till we were out of picher drive through there all the time the ottawa county police harrass ppl that drive through there its rediculous i grew up in picher and never had those kinds of problems wth is the world coming to when u cant even visit ur old hometown without cops on ur backside?
your not a criminal or kiss ass is why they harrased you the criminals that do real crimes are allowed to nothing get done to them or will just the way county is ran has been for a long time
what a tragedy… and i thought that i had it bad growing up at the Love Canal Site in new york…….
I'd like to know if someone here might recognize the young girl whose picture I took when I toured Picher in 1997 for a photo class. I was always really happy with how the shot came out, and wished that I could somehow she could get to see it.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1608412806…
delete "I could" 🙂
I was born in picher now live in sedro woolley washington i will never for get my home town i love picher that will always my frist love
hey my name is william i grew uo in picher as well as all my family i find it hard to look back and see where i played football and ate icecream went on my first date i didnt spend the time that i would of liked to this is to all the chat rats like me have a beer and enjoy what you got while it last carver1981
Anyone know who posted on YouTube the video of Real Goblin at Picher, Oklahoma?
Am a producer with SyFy Channel and want to source the footage. Any info please call 818-333-5794 and ask for David.
We drove the Picher today. I was absolutely shocked at all the homes and buildings still standing!! The media I remembered was all about the tornado destroying it and the fact it was contaminated.
So sad to see all those buildings vacant. I come from a small town in Oklahoma with those close ties and can't imagine losing our beloved town no matter how small it is. I so want to take my son back who is 11 for a quote "field trip" he loves photography and I think this could be a great learning experience.
As sad as it is, I think it is even worse that our poor government hasn't contracted with Habitat for Humanity to recycle the materials from the homes or somehow beable to put some of it to use. I just hate seeing such waste just another poor government mess!!
My heart goes out to all the former residents of Picher and thank goodness we didnt stop I had no idea that you could get arrested in Picher for viewing sadness!
Is it safe to visit?
Yeah. Spending one day, or even a week there, you'll be fine. It's the exposure over many many years. I was just there today. We were driving back from my grandparents house in Missouri to Texas and we stopped by cause they used to live there. The government it starting to tear everything down now. Not much is left. We've heard that the plan is their gonna flood the whole town. I mean if you wanna go visit, it's fine, but nothing's really there anymore sadly. Just a few houses, a factory or two, and the the main road which they have government offices on.
I know of a native plant thats in the bamboo family it dies out every winter but comes back. Several homes around Carden had it growing in there yard. It's more of a landscaping plant and not worth in building anything. There are also Hollies left behind that looks nice.
Lot of water pools around that would be nice to see filled with horsetails, cattails or water lilies. Weeping willows might survive there along with bamboo. If I had land in those towns, wouldn't sell out either, if Big Brother didn't pay enough. Even they cut off my power and water, I'd keep my landscaping up graded.
Driving thru Picher seen the chat piles are still there. Lot of dust. Like to idea of planting bamboo aroud town.
Fire hydrants can be seen sinking into ground. Growing up along river, I know about native river cane, (bamboo family). The roots intertwine, and impossible to dig up without hatchet. Bamboo is similar, but can grow away from river. Indians claim this is their area. Geremino, Crazy Horse, and a few others fought to preserve their way of life. In Miami, there casinos is making money and leaders are lining their pockets. The creek can be filtered with horsetails like I read somebody wrote here before. Tonto needs to get head out of backdoor and fight to clean up their town. Big Brother has too much red tape to get anything done quickly.
We drove in Galena yesterday. It was discusting, didn't see the people living beside Historic 66 Galena sign. White Trash comes in all colors. House beside sign had a barbque grill and Chevy Truck. The trash for garbage truck is just all over ground. Guess they rather buy beer than rent trash bin. I tried to get photo of sign and leave trash out of photo.
Town Hall has a Hewy Helicopter where some idiot's threw rocks into windows. Towns people had to put fence around it.
For the gentleman that got arrested. Would want someone just stopped by your house and just walk in and when and, if you had them arrested they let them go because they said I thought they were abandoned. I think not! Not all buildings were bought out and US citizens still own and dont forget about the GREAT oklahoma law "MAKE MY DAY LAW"
For so many of the people who got arrested have been criminals in ottowa county for years they have been allowed to carry on and charges continue to get dropped
A study came out in 1996 that showed 37% of the children had unhealthy levels of lead in their blood. Almost nobody left, and the town mayor publicly stated it was a lie by the Washington bureaucrats to "steal their mineral rights". Should tell you something.
NPR did a story on Pitcher/Cardin and reported that the town's been a hotbed of meth labs for years and never more so since the buyout began; the story said 12 meth labs were shut down in abandoned buildings in Picher alone in 2009. One of the last businesses to leave the town was the county-funded meth detox clinic, and that's provable via the Yahoo! reviews for the place that continued well up into 2009 even after the town was dis-established. That should also tell you something.
The town's not cute, and it's not a fun tourist destination. It's like Centralia Pennsylvania meets meth-addicted trailer trash meets county sheriff with aviator shades who's never left the county. Stay the fuck away, I'm serious.
Ain't it a beautiful thing… the west is still the west. The "Make My Day" law will someday be replaced with showdowns on main street at high noon…. gotta love it!
wow
So i saw all of these cool things about Picher, and decided to go. after a LONG night and a $7000 bailout i just got home from ottowa county jail charged for burglary II abbeding a minor and obstructing an officer. My advice…DO NOT GO TO PICHER. We went to take pictures and have a nice day, and got arrested for entering the abandoned buildings. I now face 2 State Felony charges, and time in prison for trying to have a nice weekend! If i don't go to prison i will post the results of the case. P.S. If anyone has had this happen or knows anyone else this has happened to please email me at kyleberries@yahoo.com My court date is Nov. 25th 2010
WOW!! that is insane! hope things go well for you? and btw was it "posted"? no trespassing?
Hopefully the charges get dropped! how did the court date go? i wonder how much money each person got to leave? who paid them to leave? my hometown blackwell is going through this.
The buildings belong to the Federal government now, so they likely have told the local cops to arrest and prosecute any trespassers. Ottawa County is not the most….progressive part of OK, and the local PD are probably pretty suspicious and hostile towards outsiders poking around in the town at all, since Picher is rightly seen as an embarrassment by most of the locals now in Miami, who've been called "chat-rats" for decades.
Let's hope kyleberries@yahoo.com didn't end up getting actually prosecuted for Burglary in the 2nd Degree as they threatened to, because under OK law all you need to do is "break and enter any building or any part of any building […] in which any property is kept.", and the punishment is 2-7 years. You don't even need an obvious intent to steal anything, just breaking and entering is sufficient and "breaking" is defined as basically entering without permission.
So, according to the backwards-ass OK penal code (which actually lists "Sabbath Breaking" as a crime and demands a $20 fine from violators) you could be sentenced to 7 years in state prison for entering a single building in Picher once (without forced entry) and leaving immediately without touching anything.
STAY OUT OF THE BUILDINGS IN PITCHER!
David,
I'm a retired cop so I'll give you my 2 cents worth. Ever watched the TV show "Pickers"? It's a couple of guys "buying" stuff across the country for their "antique" shop. They stop at old Ghost towns and abandoned buildings and take things for their shop without paying anyone. That property may not have anyone present their but it is owned by someone. Taking things like that IS Burglary and Theft. Their was a guy in my town that ran an Antique shop and was arrested for Burglary for going into a home like in Picher and stealing a kitchen wood burning stove. A friend of my Dad had a friend who had old wagon wheels for a fence around his front yard and went out of town for a few days and when he came back home they were all gone. You can bet it was an Antique Dealer.
Also, to answer your question, the EPA bought everybody out under the Tar Creek Superfund project. The amount they got was based on their home's assessed value. About a dozen people claimed to have gotten screwed on their assessment because the inspector was lazy and rushed through the job, and at least two others apparently got significantly over market value for their houses because they had a family member who was on the board for the Trust and thus knew the inspector. I'm not sure how the rest fared.
Wondering why bamboo couldn't be planted around those piles for wind break. Goverment clean up is a joke, they'll just haul the mess somewhere else. Wildlife loves bamboo, deer and other critters make homes in it.
I live near a creek that is loaded with horse tails. Couldn't Horsetails be planted in Tar creek to catch polluti
Bamboo roots could hold ground together. The poles make great tomato plant braces. Home Depot sells truck loads of them from China. I'm part Cherokee, my ancestors were sold out while John Ross was in Washington trying to keep their land in Georgia. That is the problem with Native Americans selling each other out letting Europeans take over. Columbas was an idiot returning to Europe and die in prison. He could have been cool with the Natives and cruised the Gulf of Mexico.
WOAH! I want that sulfuric acid in picture 72! I just want to go into that school in general. Was it just unlocked or did someone let you in?
There are tons of great pictures of Picher in the Picher, Oklahoma Flickr group: http://www.flickriver.com/groups/picheroklahoma/p…
One of my pics from Picher (of the church) is appearing on the cover of a soon-to-be-published book.
That's good stuff guys. Funny how i shot some of the same things that you guys did.
In 1944 I was born there,on "C" st.
Remember playing on the piles, and taking
my Dad's lunch to him at Eagle#9.
sad to see the town die
Hi R. Lafferty,
Did you know the Carlin family? They owned Carlin Hardware on the main street (Connell?)in Pitcher. Ken Carlin Sr. was my grandfather. Ken Jr. is my dad. Ken Sr. was married to Moselle Wise and they also had two daughters, Shirley and Karen. My dad id about your age. It was odd to read about the man who was arrested exploring the buildings. My wife and I were there about the same time doing the same thing!
-Aaron Carlin southlandappraisal@yahoo.com
http://www.tarcreekfilm.com/trailer.php
I lived in Picher from birth to almost 9 yrs of age. I remember walking and playing on the chat piles. My sisters and I would walk from our house on 601 South Cherokee Street to town for our mom and get a few groceries. We would also pick wild asparagus growing in small wooded areas near the chat piles. We went to church at Mrs. Brown's house. Joe Don Rooney also went there, I used to sit with him. We were so young. I really hate it for everyone that has lost their homes. I pray they will soon have new homes and memories. God Bless!
Why didn't they use the chat for roads before they got so big? Least planted Silver Maples around them or something to hide or protect from dust.
Excellent site with gorgeous pictures expertly documenting the death of an American small town. Should be a lesson to all of us. Some one should make a book about it.
Excelent Post! I got to go up there the weekend Pitcher was officially to be closed. People were moving things out of buildings and houses and the fire station was packing up their equipment. It was more crowded then I expected and everyone knew right off I wasn't from there so I didn't get a chance to explore many buildings with the cops near by overseeing the move. I did get to talk to Hoppy though at his Museum. He was great to talk to and was still pretty bitter about the whole thing. He said he thinks they are going to demolish the town and start strip mining the area again.
I may go to visit this place in a few weeks. It's quite sad. The entire population just left just a few months ago
Kinda sad for someone who has been in the mines as a kid, swam in the millponds, played pool at Hoppe Ray's. Picher was a sad place though due to all the contamination of the land and the bloodstreams of its youth.
is this the same thing that is going on in blackwell ok. the contamination i mean
This place was pretty cool and pretty far I must admit. Haha.