French Diggings

Lead, Zinc past producer · Washington County, Missouri

Past ProducerLead, ZincSurfaceUSGS MRDS

Section

What kind of site this is
ORE · LEAD, ZINCBENCHESSECTION · ILLUSTRATIVE

Drawn as an open-pit mine, dug down in benches from the surface. The ore color stands for lead, zinc. Federal records note the kind of operation and its status, not its depth or layout, so this is a typical example rather than a survey of this site.

Location

StateMissouri
CountyWashington
Coordinates38.17896, -90.80982

Commodities

PrimaryLead, Zinc

Mine Details

StatusPast Producer
TypeSurface
Data SourceUSGS MRDS
Source ID10221215
This siteNearby records

Search within 10 miles of here Open in Google Maps

Nearest Recorded Sites

SiteDistanceCommodityStatus
Tailings Pond -Barite -Mo Mining A0.3 miBarium-BariteProducer
Ben Hornie's Diggings0.3 miLeadPast Producer
Plant B0.6 miBarium-BariteProducer
Unknown - Lead near Raintree, MO0.8 miLeadPast Producer
Unknown - Ba near Briarwood Estates, MO1.0 miBarium-BaritePast Producer
Tailings Pond -Barite -Baroid Div1.1 miBarium-BaritePast Producer
Tailings Pond -Barite -Desoto Min1.1 miBarium-BaritePast Producer
Tailings Pond -Barite1.2 miBarium-BaritePast Producer
Darley Lead Mine1.3 miLeadPast Producer
Tailings Pond -Barite -Desoto Min1.3 miBarium-BaritePast Producer
Richwoods1.3 miBarium-BariteProducer
Joe Smith Mine1.4 miBarium-BaritePast Producer

What This Means

This mine is a past producer — it was once operational but is no longer actively mining. Past producer sites may still have environmental impacts including disturbed land, tailings piles, and potential water quality effects. Some past producer sites have been reclaimed, while others remain as-is. Check with your state mining or environmental agency for current site conditions.

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