Located here in northeast Oklahoma is what is left of the small town of Picher, Ok. Once there was almost 15,000 residence living here back in the mid-1920's, now it is just a lonely ghost town with an official population of 0. During WWI over $20 Billion worth of lead and zinc ore was mined from here and the surrounding area and more than 50% of the lead and zinc used in WWI were mined here.
In 1967 mining in the area ceased, but the damage to the environment from the mining trailings and runoff was done. In 1980 the area was designated as part of the Tar Creek Superfund site. The following years some action to address the environmental hazards and contamination were attempted, but the conditions were considered so severe that the US Government decided to close Picher and relocate its residents. In June of 2015, the last official resident of Picher died.
Today this area is nothing but a wasteland. The majority of the structures have been bulldozed leaving blocks and blocks of cement slabs where homes and businesses once stood. There are still mountains of chat piles rising up around where once was a thriving US town.
Here you will be searching one of the few structures still standing in the area. I am not sure what it is but it appears to be a large foundation to something, I am guessing that some kind of mining equipment once set upon it. There is plenty of room to park in the abandon nearby city street or you could even pull into one of the driveways nearby. From there it is just a very short walk to GZ. There hide has a log only and there is no room for a pen, so please bring one with you.
☠☠☠ Keep in mind that this area has many hazards both physical and environmental and would not be recommended to bring your children here. ☠☠☠
Disclaimer: You are under no obligation to hunt this cache. You do so at your own risk. Like any outdoor sport, it carries the risk of unforeseen hazards. Use your best judgment with the environment and conditions. As conditions and cache locations may vary, it is the responsibility of the searcher to be familiar with the conditions in the area to be searched, to adequately prepare for those conditions, and to conduct oneself safely and responsibly and remain within his or her personal abilities and limitations. Children should be well supervised. Individual Geocache sponsors assume no liability for events, which may occur, related directly or indirectly to your searching for this cache.
