I think this town had lead poisoning in the water. had a friend who lived there and received quite a big some from the government because of it. I had heard that a tornado went through tearing it apart and the town just decided not to rebuild. had many mines and was actually pretty dangerous to live there. I remember it briefly. my sister marched with the band for Christmas parades. :)
The song is called Hide and Seek and its by reverb artist Imogene Heap. I think it fits the desolation of this place. So haunting and very similar to what happened in Centralia, PA.
I keep saying I need to drive up from Tulsa to see this place. Since I first saw a picture of the Church featured at 1:05 I've been enthralled with abandoned places. There is just something about churches and schools that catch me deep. Its sad what happened to this community, and now all that is left is a slow decay into history's memory.
I love the history and thank you for the incredible imagery. But I'm sorry. That music is intolerable. Was it autotuned or supposed to be like barbershop style?
Bettie Turner my grandparents used to live there,all the sink holes,chat piles,cave ins,chat piles,abandoned houses...EVERYTHING....I still cry till this day....
The former residents of Picher held a Christmas parade in early December 2015 where several thousand attended The were 75 individual floats.Being forced to move by the crooked Buyout committee did not kill the town.
the government condemned this town due to lead contamination..they were in the process of buying out the people that lived there when a tornado tore through the town and demolished about 60-70% of the town. i lived there for awhile when i was little until i moved in with my dad two towns away. it is very sad to see picher this way because i have a lot of memories there :(
I worked on a project some 35 yrs ago sampling those chat piles to be sure they were not piled on natural mounds of earth (like chat piles to the north near Baxter Springs, KS) Pitcher was declining then but very much open for business. The chat piles were higher than the water towers then. A lot of chat was removed to make asphalt, used as railroad bedding (between ties), and used to fill "sink-holes" (where abandoned mine shafts caved in). My wife's grandfather died working in a mine in the Pitcher area.
Good to hear it! It is the govts job to make you aware of potential hazards. Not make up your mind for you as to wether or not you want to live with or near them. Glad to see he has stood his ground.
I stopped in Picher for gas and a burger on my way across the country on OLD 66. I swear I almost stayed. The people there were wonderful. So sad, so sad. I ordered a custom-made T-shirt that reads, "Picher OK". At least one person in the world will not forget you and your wonderful town.
Hi, I am not familiar with the area as I’m from Texas.I have followed a case of 2 missing girls from I believe Welch.Lauria Bible and Ashley Freeman 16 yr olds we’re kidnapped,the Freeman parents were murdered and the home was set on fire in December of 1999.Through years and years of off on investigations Lorene Bible is still searching for her daughter.OSBI just recently arrested 1 of the 3 men who allegedly did this crime.Through a plea deal Ronnie Busick was to lead investigators to where the girls remains could be found.They were not found at the location.The family is ask today for anyone that might can get information/addresses on any homes/structures with cellars in Picher to please do.Busick will now have to serve his max time since he did not lead them to the girls,isn’t much time but the deal was made because family needs the girls to come home for closure.You can google or go to Facebook page Find Lauria Bible for more into this case.It would be greatly appreciated if you have any addresses or area you can provide.The area they are focused on is 6th and Ethel.A lady moved from Ireland to NY to travel to OK and has published a book on the case”Hell in the Heartland”.If anyone else reads this and can provide info please do.Thank you.
This is a sad vedio. There looked like to be a lot of nice houses. The little candy wrappers, the soda, and the Picher Mining Museum too. When I look at the photos I can actually imagine people walking around, working hard, going to church, kids going to soccer, and people driving. I feel for the people who once lived the people who once lived there because it must've been pretty hard on them knowing they can never go back.
There seems to be two of you showing us Oklahoma. Your items, so far, are to the North, and Justin Moore is to the South. There is a ton of history and no doubt it takes more than one person just to scratch the surface. Interesting history. Thanks again.
The thing is so ironic, when we were kids we didn't have full gear to ride our bikes, we had no seat belts in cars let alone air bags!! We played in the oil fields with god knows what and little or no safety. These towns were probably contaminated for generations yet we survived. Superfund clean up? This has only happened in the last 30 years or so. Just wondering how the hell did we survive let alone live to a ripe old age? Pure luck?
If i remember right the town was already being bought out when the EF 4 Struck. The fed government decided not to deal with the cleanup from the F4 and the folks just up and left. People had gone through the town in 09 and were able to see The F4 aftermath as it had gone untouched
The chat hills have caused cancer in people. Full of lead and arsenic the drinking water is contaminated with acid. Kids were swimming in it and being burned. Thought it was because of the sun. No it was the acid
The Pharmacy was still standing but was empty. Other than some security working out of the school, and a caretaker (for whatever reason) at the low income housing, it was pretty much deserted. I must admit the scale of the chat piles was impressive, the photos don't even come close to doing them justice.
Nice video, brings back a lot of memories. What happened to Picher is a sad story. Lead is the blame, but some of my cousins grew up there and one of them is a successful computer "genius". Another cousin is involved in law enforcement in another state. I spent plenty of days playing in Picher/Cardin when I was young and I graduated college with honors and have a successful job. There are too many success stories from Picher for me to believe the lead poisoning story.
I roamed it pretty freely, other than the school where the U.S. Marshalls and security were headquartered, and the DHS housing that was cordened off. They were actively tearing everything down though, so may not be much left to see.
LOL, none taken. Doesn't seem to be much middle ground with it, either you love it or hate it. Fitting for Picher, half the people couldn't wait to leave, and the other half didn't want to leave at all.
AWESOME video...........I live like 15 min from Picher across the kansas border and its sad to see this place like that :( ........... GREAT place to ride dirtbikes though :)
i like ghost town,,hiihhi,,what happen this town without people live there????any person want tell me what happen there'??,,,i always thinking American very2 modern country,,no place like this already,,all modern But see this video i'm very surprise ,look like cowboy town with nobody ,,??watching this 2013,,From KL cities,,
Oh no, i get it. I build sand cars, and we sell them and parts to OK all the time. i like, i dont effin get it. there aren't dunes out there!. {No ocean} so im like what gives. HOLY HELL. Man made dunes dug from under the earth. Thats impressive, and deeply disturbing all at the same time. Imagine our "world", 50 years from today. Its built atop a crust we are literally destroying to release gas. fracking. ha. i guarantee we are going to see cities sucked up by the earth in our lifetime.
