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Picher is a ghost town and former city in Ottawa County, northeastern Oklahoma, United States. It was a major national center of lead and zinc mining for more than 100 years in the heart of the Tri-State Mining District.
#Picher #ghosttowns #earthday2024
#Picher #ghosttowns #earthday2024
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00:00Hello and welcome to the Dark Mystery Lounge. I know I've been gone for a while, I will explain later.
00:07For this year's Earth Day special, we are going to take a look at Pitcher, Oklahoma.
00:12Once a bustling mining town that became a toxic ghost town.
00:16So let's dive right into the rise and fall of Pitcher.
00:20Pitcher is nestled in the northeast corner of Oklahoma.
00:29Only a stone's throw away from the Kansas border to the north and about 12 miles to the east is the Missouri State Line.
00:37Owned by the Quapaw Tribe, our story begins before Pitcher got its name.
00:42In 1830, the then infamous President Andrew Jackson signed into law the Indian Removal Act.
00:50Under this act, tribes were forcibly removed from their land and relocated to the west of the Mississippi River
00:57in a brutal migration known as the Trail of Tears.
01:01Just like many tribes, the Quapaw Tribe was removed from their land in Arkansas to the northeast corner of Oklahoma.
01:08Because the migration was so brutal, the tribe, which numbered in the tens of thousands,
01:14by the time they reached the reservation, very few survived the trip.
01:18As the Quapaw Tribe were trying to survive on their new reservation,
01:22in the late 1800s and early 1900s, lead and zinc ore was discovered on their land.
01:29Some of the landowners agreed to lease some of their land for mining,
01:32and in turn, they would get paid royalties, which seemed like a fair enough trade.
01:37In 1913, major lead and zinc ore deposits were discovered.
01:42Mining companies wanted to seize this opportunity.
01:45In order to mine legally, they would have to get the permission of the landowners to do so.
01:50But there was a problem.
01:52Most of the Quapaw landowners refused to lease.
01:55So instead of moving on, these mining companies decided to use a different approach.
02:00These companies would get around these landowners by teaming up with the Federal Bureau of Indian Affairs.
02:05They lobbied the Bureau to pressure Congress that 62 landowners were legally incompetent
02:12and unable to care for their own land and businesses.
02:15Technically, this was legal at the time.
02:18So they had basically stolen the land right out from under them,
02:21forcing them off their land for the second time.
02:23With the Quapaw tribe out of the way, business began picking up and the town of Pitcher was born.
02:35The town was officially incorporated in March 1918,
02:40named after O.S. Pitcher, owner of the Pitcher Lead Company,
02:44which operated several mines in the area.
02:47Mining was in full swing, and 50% of the lead used to make bullets in World War I came from Pitcher.
02:55Lead was used to make bullets and bombshells,
02:58and the zinc helped to prevent rusting on tanks and other steel equipment.
03:02Over the region's mining lifetime,
03:05a total of 1.7 million tons of lead
03:08and 8.9 million tons of zinc concentrate were produced.
03:12Not the raw ore itself.
03:15248 mills were built to handle the processing of lead and zinc ore.
03:20To process the massive amounts of lead and zinc,
03:23first it was crushed up into smaller pieces.
03:26In some cases, they used dry gravity separation.
03:29Sometimes they would use a frost plotation pond.
03:32The ground ore would be mixed with a mixture of toxic chemicals,
03:36including cyanide and froth.
03:38The lead and zinc would flow to the top.
03:40The waste from this process would be thrown into a growing pile outside.
03:45There were nearly 300 piles of mine tailings,
03:48known as chat,
03:49were scattered all over Pitcher and other surrounding towns.
03:53Some of these chat piles would reach nearly 200 feet tall.
03:57These chat piles contained some toxic metals,
03:59such as lead, zinc, and cadmium.
04:02Either out of sheer ignorance,
04:04or just flat out didn't care,
04:06these mining companies and the vast amounts of waste they produced
04:09would end up being just one of many factors
04:12that would cause the town's demise.
04:15In 1926, the population peaked at more than 14,000 residents,
04:20and an additional 14,000 miners coming in to work the fields,
04:25coming from as far as Joplin and Carthridge, Missouri,
04:28via a trolley system.
04:29The Pitcher area became the most productive lead and zinc mining field
04:34in the tri-state district,
04:36producing over $20 billion worth of ore
04:39between 1917 and 1947.
04:43After World War II,
04:44mining production began to decline,
04:47and by 1967,
04:49all of the mines were shut down.
04:51But the mine shafts remained,
04:52as did 70 million tons of chatt,
04:5536 million tons of millsand and sludge.
05:02While the mines were in operation,
05:05they would continuously pump out groundwater from these mines.
05:08But when production ceased,
05:10so did the water pumps.
05:12They knew that if they didn't keep the mines dry,
05:14they would flood,
05:15contaminating the water with heavy metals and sulfuric acid.
05:19With this in mind,
05:21the Eagle Pitcher Lead Company
05:23offered to backfill the 1,400 mine shafts with a chatt,
05:28but the Bureau of Indian Affairs told them not to bother,
05:31claiming that,
05:32quote,
05:33the land's value for farming purposes
05:35has already been greatly impaired,
05:37if not destroyed,
05:38unquote.
05:39The government knew how badly contaminated the land was
05:43and really didn't care.
05:45So they gave the land back to the Quaffa Nation
05:47with the expiration of the mining leases.
05:51Honestly,
05:51I would have been livid,
05:52forcing them to move twice,
05:54stealing the second reservation land,
05:57having their fun,
05:58and just tossing all their garbage out and leaving.
06:01Once the production halted,
06:03people left.
06:04About 2,000 people remained in Pitcher,
06:07but the nightmare was just beginning.
06:09Anytime the wind would pick up,
06:11the toxic dust from the chatt piles would spread.
06:14Residents unaware of how dangerous it was
06:17would breathe it in.
06:18The chatt was used to build foundations,
06:21driveways,
06:22and even fill children's sandboxes.
06:24People would have picnics on top of the chatt piles.
06:27Children would play on them with dirt bikes,
06:30and in the winter,
06:31they would sled down these piles.
06:33When it would rain,
06:35the mine shafts would flood,
06:36which made the water toxic with heavy metals
06:38and sulfuric acid.
06:40It would run off into Tar Creek,
06:42which runs through Pitcher.
06:44You can easily tell if the water is toxic
06:46due to its distinctive orange color.
06:49On top of this,
06:50due to the mine shafts not being backfilled,
06:53sinkholes started to pop up,
06:54swallowing up houses and buildings.
06:57Some of these flooded sinkholes
06:58would just be used as swimming holes.
07:01When exiting out of the water,
07:03their bodies would be red
07:04from what looked like sunburn,
07:05but it was actually a chemical burn
07:07from swimming in acid.
07:08In 1983, the EPA declared Pitcher
07:12the Tar Creek Superfund site
07:14and was placed on the NPL,
07:17or National Priority List.
07:19Teachers began noticing
07:20that students in Pitcher
07:21had lower standardized test scores
07:23than other children in the state.
07:25The reason behind these defects
07:27became clear in early 1990s,
07:30when the Indian Health Service
07:31discovered that 35% of Pitcher's kids
07:35had high levels of lead in their blood.
07:37In August 1994,
07:40to address the threat of lead exposure
07:42to children,
07:43EPA began sampling soils
07:45at high-access areas,
07:47such as daycares, schoolyards,
07:50and other areas where children congregate.
07:52The sampling detected
07:53significant concentrations of lead,
07:56cadmium, and other heavy metals
07:57in the surface soils.
07:59The EPA, who were already trying
08:01to clean up the topsoil of several houses,
08:04but the work was slow,
08:05and any time it rained,
08:06the now-clean soil is again contaminated.
08:10For those who don't know,
08:11lead wreaks havoc in the body
08:13once introduced,
08:14either by inhaling toxic dust,
08:16drinking water,
08:17or, as kids sometimes do,
08:20they put their hands in their mouths
08:21after playing with the chat.
08:23According to the Center for Disease Control
08:26and Prevention, CDC,
08:28lead exposure can, quote,
08:30seriously harm a child's health,
08:32including damage to the brain
08:34and nervous system,
08:36slowed growth and development,
08:38learning and behavioral problems,
08:39hearing and speech problems,
08:41unquote.
08:43After learning about the test results
08:44for lead exposure,
08:45most of the residents of Pitcher
08:47lobbied for a buyout.
08:49But, of course,
08:50they were met with resistance
08:51from the government,
08:52especially Oklahoma Senator Jim Inhofe,
08:55who downplayed the severity
08:57of the problems facing Pitcher
08:58and other surrounding towns.
09:00Senator Inhofe was chair
09:02of the Senate Committee
09:03on Environment and Public Works,
09:06who oversees the EPA,
09:07from 2003 to 2007,
09:10and re-elected again
09:11in 2015 to 2017.
09:15He's also a climate change denialist
09:17and all-around prize-winning jackass.
09:20Back in the day,
09:21Jim and his brother
09:22owned Mid-Continent Casualty Company,
09:25which is an insurance firm
09:27that specializes in protecting clients
09:29with difficult or unique exposures.
09:32In other words,
09:33companies that are known
09:34for polluting the environment.
09:36Mid-Continent Casualty Company
09:38was sold in the 80s
09:39and is now part of
09:40the American Financial Group.
09:43This seems like a huge conflict of interest,
09:45not only as a sitting senator,
09:47but also working with the EPA.
09:49That's why he was trying to downplay
09:51the situation in Pitcher.
09:53In June 2004,
09:55the then-governor of Oklahoma,
09:57Brad Henry,
09:58stepped up and offered buyouts.
10:00But the state couldn't afford
10:01to buy everyone out,
10:03so they offered voluntary buyouts
10:05to families with children
10:06six years and younger
10:07to the town of Pitcher and Cardin.
10:09At the end of 2005,
10:1255 families were relocated,
10:15costing the state $3 million.
10:17While the buyouts were happening,
10:19the Army Corps of Engineers
10:21began to evaluate
10:22the subsidence risk
10:23of towns in
10:25Tar Creek Superfund site.
10:27In January 2006,
10:29they released a report.
10:30They determined 286 locations
10:33in and around
10:34the Tar Creek Superfund site
10:36had an elevated subsidence risk
10:38due to the abandoned mines.
10:41In Pitcher alone,
10:42there are 139 houses,
10:4411 businesses,
10:4613 public-use facilities,
10:48including churches,
10:49utilities,
10:50and parks,
10:50and 78 roads
10:51at risk of collapse.
10:5386% of Pitcher's buildings
10:55that were still in use
10:56could collapse at any moment.
10:58Now noticing an even bigger threat
11:01that even Senator Inhofe
11:02couldn't ignore,
11:04it was just the push needed
11:05to ramp up the buyout program.
11:07In May 2006,
11:09Senator Inhofe,
11:10U.S. House Representative
11:11Dan Bourne,
11:12and Governor Brad Henry
11:14released a press statement
11:15announcing a federal buyout program
11:18to voluntarily relocate
11:19residents and businesses
11:21still living in Pitcher and Cardin.
11:23the population was now down
11:25to 1,000 residents
11:27who would not budge
11:28no matter what.
11:30Needless to say,
11:31the decision to move
11:32would be made for them
11:33in a much more forceful way.
11:40On May 10, 2008,
11:43at 5.40 p.m.,
11:45Pitcher was struck
11:46by an EF-4 tornado.
11:47There were six confirmed deaths,
11:50possibly including one child,
11:52and at least 150 people
11:54were injured in Pitcher alone.
11:56Nearly 200 homes were destroyed.
11:59The National Guard were called in
12:00to assist with the rescue and recovery.
12:03Instead of the government
12:04helping to clean up and rebuild,
12:06they kept pushing the buyouts.
12:08This time,
12:09there was very little resistance.
12:11After all,
12:12they had no home left to sell.
12:13It was the final death blow
12:15to an already dying town.
12:18In April 2009,
12:20residents voted 55-6
12:22to dissolve Pitcher-Cardin
12:24School District.
12:25It graduated its final class
12:27of 11 in May.
12:30By 2009,
12:31the district's enrollment
12:32had dropped
12:33to a total of 49 students
12:35from approximately 343 students
12:38years prior.
12:40Remaining students
12:40were assigned to attend
12:42Commerce and Quapaw School Districts.
12:45The city's post office
12:47was scheduled to close
12:48in July 2009,
12:50and the city ceased operation
12:52as municipality
12:53on September 1, 2009.
12:56By June 29, 2009,
12:59all of the residents
13:00had been given federal checks
13:02to enable them to relocate
13:04from Pitcher permanently.
13:06The town was considered
13:07too toxic to be habitable.
13:09On the last day,
13:10all of the final residents
13:12met at the school auditorium
13:14to say goodbye.
13:16As of November 2010,
13:18it was reported
13:19that Pitcher still had
13:20one business
13:21and six occupied houses.
13:24Starting in January 2011,
13:26almost all remaining
13:28commercial structures
13:29were scheduled
13:29to be demolished.
13:31Gary Linderman,
13:32owner of the Old Miners Pharmacy,
13:35said he would stay
13:36until the last resident left.
13:37By March 2014,
13:40standing abandoned buildings
13:41including the Pitcher-Cardin
13:43High School building,
13:45a Christian church,
13:46the mining museum,
13:47and a handful of mercantile buildings,
13:49as well as numerous
13:51abandoned houses.
13:52The municipality of Pitcher
13:54was officially dissolved
13:56on November 26, 2013.
13:58The Pitcher-Mining Field Museum,
14:01which had been housed
14:02in the former Tri-State Zinc
14:04and Lead Ore Producers Association
14:06building,
14:07was destroyed by arson
14:09in April 2015.
14:11But all of the archives
14:12and artifacts
14:13were removed
14:14well before the fire.
14:16In March 2017,
14:18the often photographed
14:19Christian church,
14:20which was originally
14:21a one-room schoolhouse,
14:23was also destroyed by fire.
14:24Gary Linderman,
14:26owner of the Old Miners Pharmacy,
14:29was featured
14:29in the May 28, 2007 issue
14:32of People Magazine
14:33in the Heroes Among Us article,
14:36Prescription for Kindness.
14:38He vowed to stay
14:38as long as there was
14:39anyone left who needed him
14:41and to be the last one
14:42out of the city.
14:43Sadly,
14:44he died on June 9, 2015,
14:47at the age of 60
14:48from a sudden illness,
14:50which officially made Pitcher
14:51a ghost town.
14:57When it comes to
14:58the future of Pitcher,
15:00it's going to be a long time
15:01before it can be restored
15:02back to its former self,
15:04if it's even possible.
15:06The Quapaw tribe
15:07is now working with the EPA
15:08when it comes to cleanup,
15:10taking up the responsibility
15:11of executing the cleanup plans.
15:14From what was said
15:15by both the tribe
15:16and the EPA,
15:17it could take decades
15:19for cleanup to be complete.
15:20Even though the town
15:22is pretty much empty,
15:23Pitcher has received
15:24a lot of attention
15:25over the years
15:26from filmmakers
15:27flying drones over the town
15:28and filming all the
15:30abandoned houses
15:31and buildings.
15:32There are occasional reunions
15:34of former Pitcher residents
15:35that spoke about
15:36how much fun
15:37they had growing up
15:38in the town.
15:40They would even talk about
15:41the Pitcher-Cardin
15:42High School football team,
15:43the Gorillas,
15:45who won the state championship
15:46back in 1984.
15:47The life-sized statue
15:49of a gorilla
15:50that once was in front
15:51of the high school
15:52now sits down the street
15:54at what is known
15:55as the Pitcher-Cardin Memorial,
15:56where there are four plaques
15:58telling the story
15:59and history of Pitcher.
16:01Every year,
16:02a Christmas parade
16:02would be held
16:03on the main street.
16:05So the memory of Pitcher
16:06will never truly be forgotten
16:07to those who once
16:09called Pitcher their home.
16:10A lot of former residents
16:12are angry for accepting
16:13the buyouts.
16:15Some even say
16:15that the problems in Pitcher
16:16were blown out of proportion.
16:19I hate to say it,
16:20but the death of the town
16:21was not caused
16:22by just one issue,
16:23but a perfect storm
16:24of unfortunate issues.
16:26Poisoned water,
16:27the sinkholes,
16:29the tornado,
16:30and the chat piles.
16:31I mean,
16:32even when people moved out
16:33and those abandoned houses
16:35and buildings sat there,
16:36animals tried to take back
16:37the land too
16:38and died in the process.
16:40Even birds and fish died.
16:42There are pictures
16:42of this stuff.
16:43When it comes to the sinkholes,
16:46those things are no joke.
16:47I lived down in the Tampa Bay area
16:49for a period of time
16:50and sinkholes were
16:52and still are
16:53a problem to this day.
16:55So getting those people out,
16:56then addressing the issue,
16:58was the only safe way to do it.
17:00I know I might piss some people off
17:02by saying this,
17:03but I've seen videos
17:04of former residents of Pitcher
17:06crying about how they were forced
17:08to move
17:08and how that was unfair,
17:10that they are pissed
17:11at the government.
17:11My only response to that is,
17:14how do you think
17:14the Quapaw tribe feels?
17:16They were forced off
17:17of their land in Arkansas,
17:19then settled in Oklahoma,
17:21only for them to be forced
17:22off the same land
17:23that was allocated to them.
17:25Now they have it back,
17:26but in way worse shape
17:28than before it was stolen.
17:29And now they are
17:30cleaning up the mess.
17:31It's not fair at all to them.
17:34Hopefully,
17:35that land will get cleaned up
17:36and restored to its former glory.
17:38And maybe a lesson
17:39can be learned from this,
17:41about stealing,
17:42greed,
17:43deception,
17:44and carelessness.
17:45I will leave it up to you.
17:46What lesson did you learn
17:47from this story?
17:49Let me know
17:49in the comments section
17:50down below.
17:51Okay,
17:57to explain where I've been
17:59all this time
17:59and why I haven't uploaded
18:01any videos since Halloween,
18:03well,
18:03it's been a mixture of burnout
18:04and YouTube giving me
18:06a hard time
18:06with every video I upload.
18:08Deleted views,
18:09deleted likes,
18:11false copyright warnings,
18:12only to be fixed
18:13once YouTube realizes
18:14I'm not going to back down.
18:16All their shenanigans
18:17came to a head
18:19with my Halloween special.
18:21I had it ready to go
18:22and scheduled to come out.
18:23Everything looked fine.
18:25It came out
18:26and the like button
18:27doesn't work
18:28because they are working
18:29on the animation
18:30for the like button.
18:32So if you press like,
18:33it doesn't count.
18:34So no one's going
18:35to really see it.
18:37I had no one
18:37to talk to about this
18:39because I have
18:40a tiny channel.
18:41So I decided
18:42to take a break
18:42before I ended up
18:43rage quitting
18:44and deleting everything.
18:46Honestly,
18:47YouTube killed my love
18:48for true crime
18:48and mysteries.
18:50Well,
18:50not completely,
18:52but it's pretty damaged.
18:53So I won't be uploading
18:54as often anymore.
18:56Maybe once a month
18:57at best.
18:58If you made it this far
19:00and found this video
19:01interesting,
19:02please hit that like button
19:03and all that jazz.
19:04Thank you for hanging out
19:05with me in the
19:06Dark Mystery Lounge.
19:07This is Phoenix
19:08signing out.
19:09Have a good evening
19:10and stay safe.
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