Celebrate Missouri’s Mining Heritage at Annual Fall Rocks Event
7 Oct 2014
Experience Free, Family-Friendly Activities at State Historic Site
PARK HILLS, Mo. (Oct. 7, 2014) – Parents, kids and people of all ages are invited to the Missouri Mines State Historic Site Powerhouse Museum on Saturday, Oct. 18, from 5-8 p.m., to celebrate Fall Rocks. Co-sponsored by The Doe Run Company (Doe Run) and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, this family-friendly event offers fun and educational activities to learn more about Missouri’s mineral resources, and how mining has shaped the state’s economy. Fall Rocks is free and open to the public.
“As Doe Run celebrates our 150th anniversary of lead mining in Missouri, we’re excited to show the next generation how important minerals are in our everyday lives,” said Rhonda Reed, executive secretary for the Metals Division at Doe Run. “Doe Run employees will be leading several hands-on activities to help kids learn more about mining and minerals, including cookie mining, minerals trivia and hard hat decorating.”
In addition, community members will have the opportunity to explore exhibits at the Powerhouse Museum, which showcase mining equipment, including the historic St. Joe Shovel developed by Doe Run’s predecessor, as well as samples of Missouri’s geology and mineral resources. There also will be a drawing for a youth boys and a youth girls bicycle.
Doe Run’s lead mining operations in southeast Missouri represent the second-largest lead mining district in the world. While the company marks its 150th anniversary this year, lead mining has occurred in the region for more than 300 years, prompting the growth of nearby towns. Products created from Missouri lead benefit society by providing medical and nuclear protective shielding, startup power for vehicles, backup power for hospitals and telecommunications, and alternative energy storage for hybrid vehicles, wind and solar power.
Fall Rocks is held annually at the Missouri Mines State Historic Site within St. Joe Park, a once-active mining site operated by Doe Run’s predecessor, St. Joseph Lead Company. The land was donated to the state of Missouri in 1976, and now is one of the most popular parks in the state for swimming, biking, camping and riding ATVs.
The Missouri Mines State Historic Site is located in Park Hills, Mo., on the south side of Highway 32 at the Flat River Drive overpass. For more information, contact Art Hebrank at the Powerhouse Museum at (573) 431-6226 or Rhonda Reed at (573) 626-3315.
About The Doe Run Company
Based in St. Louis, The Doe Run Company is a privately held natural resources company and a global provider of lead, copper and zinc concentrates. Dedicated to environmentally responsible mineral and metal production, Doe Run operates one of the world’s largest, single-site lead recycling centers, located in Boss, Missouri. The Doe Run Company and its subsidiaries deliver products and services necessary to provide power, protection and convenience. Doe Run has operations in Missouri, Washington and Arizona. For more information, visit www.doerun.com and http://sustainability.doerun.com.