In 1913, lead turned Picher from Oklahoma farmland into a town of about 14,000; more than a century later, the town has no permanent residents, and toxic chat piles remain in Ottawa County

In late 1913, workers drilling on Harry Crawfish’s allotment in northeast Oklahoma discovered a rich deposit of lead and zinc ore, triggering the rapid growth of the mining town of Picher, which was named for O.S. Picher, owner of the Picher Lead Company, and incorporated in 1918. A town sprang up immediately surrounding the find and, according to contemporary newspapers across the state, “the place sprang into existence overnight.”

Population peaked near 14,000 at the height of mining