Tag: Blackwell

Blackwell is a city in Kay County, Oklahoma, United States, located at the intersection of U.S. Highway 177 and State Highway 11 along Interstate 35. The population was 7,668 at the 2000 census. Blackwell was established following the September 16, 1893 Cherokee Outlet land run by A. J. Blackwell. Blackwell has an agricultural and fossil fuel based economy.
The Blackwell Zinc Company smelter first began operations in 1917.In 1974, the 80-acre Blackwell Zinc Smelter facility ceased operations . At the time, it was the city’s largest employer, employing 800 people at in 1972, and over 1,000 at its peak. It also was one of the largest zinc smelter facilities in the United States. After its closure the land and was donated to the Blackwell Industrial Authority (BIA).
The Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality has been overseeing remediation of contamination at the industrial park, groundwater, and soil throughout parts of the city since 1992. Phelps Dodge Corporation, a subsidiary…