The St. Joseph Lead Company closed this mine and mill in 1972 and donated the property to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. At one time it was the largest lead mill in the world. The powerhouse is now a small museum and it’s the only building that’s safe enough for the public to enter. The rest of the complex can be viewed from a distance. The museum has mine equipment and mineral displays.
The museum has a two large display rooms and a small theater. One of the rooms and the theater have very steep little ramps at their entryways. Most wheelchair users will need to have some help to navigate up and down the ramps.
The parking area is large enough for RVs. Museum
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The unpainted tool looks like it might be electric powered based on what looks like a electric motor. Is that the power source?
ReplyDeleteMost mining equipment is power driven to prevent underground venting problems in shallow mine shafts.
ReplyDeleteThe Bunker Hill mine complex in Idaho (Near Kellogg) was the largest Lead and Zinc mine in the US at one time, with over 211 miles of underground tunnels.
Matt's right. The ore loader is electric powered like all of the other mining equipment in the museum.This is the first lead mining museum that we've been to and we were surprised at the differences between it and coal mining.
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