Exhibits, presentations and free museum admission will highlight the Old Mine Open House at Missouri Mines State Historic Site in Park Hills. The open house will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 12 at the museum.
Industrialized lead mining began in Missouri’s Old Lead Belt in 1864, just as the Civil War was coming to a close. The open house marks 151 years of mining in the Southeast Missouri Lead District. Retired Lead Belt miners, millmen and other lead company workers will be honored guests and be on hand to answer questions and describe what it was like to work in the lead mines many years ago. Included in the open house will be a special collection of old miners’ lamps, some dating back to the late 18th century. Local mining artifacts, photographs and paper items acquired by the museum in recent years will also be displayed.
Admission to the site and its mining and mineral museum will be free during the open house. The site’s museum contains exhibits on geology and mineral resources, a mineral collection, and pieces of restored underground mining equipment.
Missouri Mines State Historic Site is located in Park Hills on the south side of Highway 32 at the Flat River Drive overpass. For more information about the event, call the site at 573-431-6226. For more information on state parks and historic sites, visit mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.