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Abandoned mines › Kentucky
Abandoned mine inventory

Abandoned mines in Daviess County, Kentucky

Daviess County, Kentucky has 53 mine and prospect features on USGS topographic maps published 1952–1983, including 30 mine openings (shafts, adits and air shafts). OSMRE's abandoned mine land inventory lists 35 problems in the county, 19 of them not yet reclaimed. MSHA's register carries 75 mines in the county with status Abandoned or Abandoned and Sealed.

Every mine and prospect feature the USGS digitized from historical topographic maps covering Daviess County, every OSMRE abandoned mine land problem in the county, and every MSHA-registered mine here with status Abandoned. Named features are listed below; unnamed ones are counted by type. Locations are deliberately not shown: this page says what abandoned workings are in the county, not where to find them. They are dangerous and should not be entered.

Mapped mine features (USGS)
53
Mine openings
30
OSMRE problems unreclaimed
19
MSHA mines marked abandoned
75
0 features carry a name0 prospect pits9 quadrangle maps, published 1952–1983 35 OSMRE problems, 16 reclaimed 2 MSHA mines abandoned and sealed
What the features are
  1. Mine openings
    shafts, adits, air shafts, portals and vertical openings: the ways into underground workings
    37 42.0%
  2. Mines and surface workings
    labelled mines, open pits, strip mines, placer and hydraulic workings
    21 23.9%
  3. Quarries, gravel and borrow pits
    construction-material and industrial-mineral extraction
    2 2.3%
  4. Dumps, tailings, spoil and gob
    what mining left above ground
    9 10.2%
  5. Mills, tipples and facilities
    processing plants and hazardous structures
    1 1.1%
  6. Other reclamation problems
    highwalls, subsidence, polluted or clogged water, fires, slides and gases in OSMRE's inventory
    18 20.5%
OSMRE abandoned mine land problems35 on inventory
Problem area Problem Status
Bill Moore Pit P2 Hazardous Water Bodies Reclamation Pending
Bill Ryan Slide P1 Dangerous Slides Reclamation Completed
Bon Harbor Shafts P2 Vertical Openings Reclamation Pending
Brush Fork Spoil P2 Dangerous Impoundments Reclamation Completed
Brush Fork Spoil P3 Gobs Reclamation Completed
Brush Fork Spoil P3 Spoil Area Reclamation Completed
Crooked Creek Mines P1 Subsidence Reclamation Completed
Crooked Creek Mines P1 Vertical Openings Reclamation Pending
Crooked Creek Mines P2 Clogged Streams Reclamation Pending
Crooked Creek Mines P2 Dangerous Impoundments Reclamation Pending
Crooked Creek Mines P2 Hazardous Equip & Facilities Reclamation Pending
Crooked Creek Mines P2 Vertical Openings In Reclamation
Crooked Creek Mines P3 Gobs Reclamation Pending
Crooked Creek Mines P3 Spoil Area Reclamation Pending
East Fork Gob P3 Equipment Facility Reclamation Pending
East Fork Gob P3 Gobs Reclamation Pending
East Fork Gob P3 Industrial/Residential Waste Reclamation Pending
Joes Run/knottsville P2 Dangerous Highwalls Reclamation Completed
Joes Run/knottsville P2 Hazardous Water Bodies Reclamation Completed
Joes Run/knottsville P3 Spoil Area Reclamation Completed
Mt. Zion Church Shaft P2 Vertical Openings Reclamation Completed
Mt. Zion Church Shaft P3 Gobs Reclamation Completed
Pre 87 P1 Dangerous Piles & Embankments Reclamation Completed
Pre 87 P2 Dangerous Highwalls Reclamation Completed
Pre 87 P2 Dangerous Piles & Embankments Reclamation Completed
Pre 87 P2 Vertical Openings Reclamation Completed
Pup Creek/rt.951 P2 Clogged Stream Lands Reclamation Pending
Sherman Snyder Pit P2 Vertical Openings Reclamation Pending
Smeathers Mines P2 Clogged Stream Lands Reclamation Completed
St. Lawrence Rd. Spoil P2 Dangerous Highwalls Reclamation Pending
St. Lawrence Rd. Spoil P2 Industrial/Residential Waste Reclamation Pending
Teddy Barnett Subsidence P1 Subsidence Reclamation Completed
Woosnam Shaft P1 Vertical Openings Reclamation Pending
Zion Hill Impoundments P2 Dangerous Highwalls In Reclamation
Zion Hill Impoundments P2 Dangerous Impoundments Reclamation Pending

Problem types carry OSMRE's priority prefix: P1 and P2 are threats to health, safety and property, P3 is environmental. A problem area is a cluster of problems reclaimed as one project; several rows can share one location.

MSHA-registered mines with status Abandoned75 on register
  1. Allco No 1 Tipple
    Facility coal · Allco Coal Company Inc · MSHA ID 4604697
    Abandoned
  2. Auger #2
    Surface coal · B & E Inc · MSHA ID 1517404
    Abandoned
  3. Auger No. 26
    Surface coal · Western Kentucky Minerals, Inc. · MSHA ID 1519536
    Abandoned
  4. B & J No 6 Strip
    Surface coal · B & J Inc · MSHA ID 1511244
    Abandoned
  5. Bakersport Mine
    Surface coal · T K Jessup Inc · MSHA ID 1507304
    Abandoned
  6. Bell Mine
    Surface coal · Winn Construction Company Inc · MSHA ID 1516197
    Abandoned
  7. Bon Harbor
    Surface coal · R A Alexander & Sons Inc · MSHA ID 1515248
    Abandoned
  8. Bon Harbor
    Surface coal · Zielinski Construction Corp · MSHA ID 1517418
    Abandoned
  9. Bon Harbor Mine
    Surface coal · B B Mining Inc · MSHA ID 1517346
    Abandoned
  10. Bon Harbor Mine No 1
    Surface coal · R A Alexander Inc · MSHA ID 1513949
    Abandoned
  11. Browns Valley Mine
    Surface coal · Winn Construction Company Inc · MSHA ID 1516482
    Abandoned
  12. Cedar Ridge
    Surface coal · Zielinski Construction Corp · MSHA ID 1513494
    Abandoned
  13. Clark Dock
    Facility coal · Lst Inc · MSHA ID 1510343
    Abandoned
  14. Daviess County Dredge And Mill
    Surface metal/non-metal · Daviess County Sand & Gravel Inc · MSHA ID 1504256
    Abandoned
  15. Daviess County Sand & Gravel
    Surface metal/non-metal · Daviess County Sand & Gravel, Inc. · MSHA ID 1517830
    Abandoned
  16. DEER CROSS QUARRY
    Surface metal/non-metal · Deer Cross Quarry · MSHA ID 1517100
    Abandoned
  17. Dickinson Surface
    Surface coal · Denton Coal Company · MSHA ID 1511108
    Abandoned
  18. Dundee No 10 Strip
    Surface coal · Zielinski Construction Corp · MSHA ID 1510019
    Abandoned
  19. Earth No 7
    Surface coal · Earth Coal Company Inc · MSHA ID 1513672
    Abandoned
  20. East West Terminal
    Facility coal · East-West Terminal Inc · MSHA ID 1509864
    Abandoned
  21. Free Silver Mine
    Surface coal · Winn Construction Company Inc · MSHA ID 1517376
    Abandoned
  22. Gatewood
    Surface coal · Kelco Inc · MSHA ID 1510882
    Abandoned
  23. Gatewood Mine
    Surface coal · Winn Construction Company Inc · MSHA ID 1517187
    Abandoned
  24. Gatewood No 1 Strip
    Surface coal · Gatewood Mining Company · MSHA ID 1509563
    Abandoned
  25. Gatewood Strip Mine
    Surface coal · L R Chapman Inc · MSHA ID 1508594
    Abandoned
  26. Golden Knott
    Surface coal · Golden R Coal Company · MSHA ID 1516356
    Abandoned
  27. Gordon Mine
    Surface coal · Winn Construction Company Inc · MSHA ID 1516406
    Abandoned
  28. Habit Mine
    Surface coal · Green Coal Company Inc · MSHA ID 1512608
    Abandoned
  29. Harper Mine
    Surface coal · Hatfield Coal Co Inc · MSHA ID 1508806
    Abandoned
  30. Hayden Mine
    Surface coal · R & L Winn Mining · MSHA ID 1516639
    Abandoned
  31. Heath
    Surface coal · Woody Sutton Mining Company Inc · MSHA ID 1513910
    Abandoned
  32. Hwm - Job #5
    Surface coal · Addington Inc · MSHA ID 1517351
    Abandoned
  33. Jim Bob Mine No 2
    Surface coal · Jim-Bob Mining Company · MSHA ID 1509788
    Abandoned
  34. Joe's Run
    Surface coal · Western Kentucky Minerals, Inc. · MSHA ID 1518418
    Abandoned
  35. Joes Run Processing
    Facility coal · Western Kentucky Minerals, Inc. · MSHA ID 1519667
    Abandoned
  36. Jones Mine
    Surface coal · Green Coal Company Inc · MSHA ID 1515723
    Abandoned
  37. K-9
    Surface coal · Green Coal Company Inc · MSHA ID 1501982
    Abandoned
  38. Keda Mine
    Surface coal · Vanover Coal Company Inc · MSHA ID 1515975
    Abandoned
  39. Kingsley Mines Inc
    Surface coal · Swiss Fuels Inc · MSHA ID 1514632
    Abandoned
  40. Knottsville Mine
    Surface coal · Green Coal Company Inc · MSHA ID 1511996
    Abandoned
  41. Knottsville Mine
    Surface coal · Addwest Mining Inc · MSHA ID 1513428
    Abandoned
  42. Ku #1
    Surface coal · Kentucky United Coal Llc · MSHA ID 1517311
    Abandoned
  43. Ku #1
    Surface coal · Kentucky United Coal Llc · MSHA ID 1518229
    Abandoned
  44. Landfill Mine
    Surface coal · Zielinski Construction Corp · MSHA ID 1517844
    Abandoned
  45. Lanham Coal Dock
    Facility coal · Lanham Coal Dock · MSHA ID 1516483
    Abandoned
  46. Laoc Strip
    Surface coal · B & B Mining Company · MSHA ID 1510871
    Abandoned
  47. Maceo Sand Dredge & Mill
    Surface metal/non-metal · Audubon Sand Company · MSHA ID 1504485
    Abandoned
  48. Mayfield
    Surface coal · R & L Winn Mining · MSHA ID 1517362
    Abandoned
  49. Midway Mine
    Surface coal · T K Jessup Inc · MSHA ID 1512307
    Abandoned
  50. No 9 Dredge
    Surface metal/non-metal · Evansville Materials Inc · MSHA ID 1507119
    Abandoned
  51. No. 1 Crusher
    Facility coal · Industry Enterprises LLC · MSHA ID 1518530
    Abandoned
  52. North Jackson Mine
    Surface coal · Winn Construction Company Inc · MSHA ID 1517171
    Abandoned
  53. North Johnson Mine
    Surface coal · Winn Construction Company Inc · MSHA ID 1517103
    Abandoned
  54. North Knottsville Mine
    Surface coal · Western Kentucky Minerals, Inc. · MSHA ID 1519657
    Abandoned
  55. Owensboro Brick And Tile Co Inc Owe
    Facility metal/non-metal · Owensboro Brick & Tile Company Inc · MSHA ID 1504637
    Abandoned
  56. Owensboro Coal Dock
    Facility coal · Owensboro Coal Dock Inc · MSHA ID 1512311
    Abandoned
  57. Paige No 1
    Surface coal · Paige Mining Inc · MSHA ID 1512880
    Abandoned
  58. Panther Creek Mine
    Surface coal · Frontier Mining Company Inc · MSHA ID 1517732
    Abandoned
  59. Panther Preparation Plant
    Facility coal · Coal Recovery Systems Inc · MSHA ID 1517397
    Abandoned
  60. Par Birdie Dixie No 1
    Surface coal · Par Birdie Coal Company · MSHA ID 1513115
    Abandoned
  61. Pleasant Ridge Strip Mine
    Surface coal · Green Coal Company Inc · MSHA ID 1508356
    Abandoned
  62. Pride Mine
    Underground coal · Pyro Mining Company · MSHA ID 1511408
    Abandoned and Sealed
  63. Princess Marion
    Surface coal · Derek Mining Inc · MSHA ID 1514909
    Abandoned
  64. River Blend Plant
    Surface coal · Denton Coal Company · MSHA ID 1511908
    Abandoned
  65. Rust Coal Dock
    Facility coal · Rust Mining LLC · MSHA ID 1518493
    Abandoned
  66. St Williams Mine
    Surface coal · Jasper & Jasper Coal Company Inc · MSHA ID 1514589
    Abandoned
  67. Steele 2
    Facility coal · Charlie Steele Inc · MSHA ID 1516794
    Abandoned
  68. Vanover Mine
    Surface coal · Zielinski Construction Corp · MSHA ID 1517869
    Abandoned
  69. Walton Creek Underground Mine
    Underground coal · Peabody Coal Company · MSHA ID 1511331
    Abandoned and Sealed
  70. West Louisville Mine
    Surface coal · Addwest Mining Inc · MSHA ID 1517078
    Abandoned
  71. Windy Hill Mine
    Surface coal · Lanham Mining Company Inc · MSHA ID 1517116
    Abandoned
  72. Winn No 2
    Surface coal · Winn Construction Company Inc · MSHA ID 1512712
    Abandoned
  73. Wolf Hill
    Surface coal · Southwind Mining Company Inc · MSHA ID 1513023
    Abandoned
  74. Yager Coal Dock
    Facility coal · Yager Coal Dock · MSHA ID 1514940
    Abandoned
  75. Young Mine
    Surface coal · R A Alexander & Sons Inc · MSHA ID 1514929
    Abandoned

Status and date are as reported to MSHA by the operator. Each mine's own page carries its accident, citation and inspection record.

By source vocabularythe publishers' own terms
Feature type Features
Mine Shaft 28
Strip Mine 15
P2 Vertical Openings 5
P2 Dangerous Highwalls 4
P3 Gobs 4
Disturbed Surface 4
P3 Spoil Area 3
P2 Dangerous Impoundments 3
Adit 2
P1 Subsidence 2
Strip Mine 2
P1 Vertical Openings 2
P2 Hazardous Water Bodies 2
P2 Clogged Stream Lands 2
P2 Industrial/Residential Waste 1
P3 Industrial/Residential Waste 1
P2 Dangerous Piles & Embankments 1
P1 Dangerous Piles & Embankments 1
Sand Pit 1
P1 Dangerous Slides 1
P3 Equipment Facility 1
P2 Clogged Streams 1
Clay Pit 1
P2 Hazardous Equip & Facilities 1
Other counties in KentuckyAll counties →
How to read these numbers

A USGS feature is a symbol on a historical topographic map, there when the map was surveyed; it may since have been sealed, reclaimed, built over or reopened as a working mine, and the map does not say which. An OSMRE row is a problem the abandoned mine land program tracks, not a mine. An MSHA mine is a registered operation whose operator reported abandonment, a record that starts in the 1970s. The three overlap and are never added together. The county is assigned from each feature's coordinates against the Census 2023 county boundaries. The full method is on the national page.

Sources
  1. USGS, Consolidated Prospect- and Mine-Related Features from 7.5- and 15-Minute Topographic Quadrangle Maps of the United States (USMIN)
    597,612 point and area features digitized from about 106,350 historical topographic maps published 1886–2006; public domain (CC0). A feature is a map symbol, not a field-verified site, and the map does not say whether it was still worked.
  2. USGS Fact Sheet 2025–3003, The Abandoned Mine Inventory of the United States
    States that as of 2025 there is no comprehensive national inventory of abandoned mine features, and that the detailed national database now being built will not be published.
  3. OSMRE, Abandoned Mine Land Inventory System (e-AMLIS), public Problems layer
    One row per abandoned mine land problem in a problem area, with its type, funding program and reclamation status; mostly coal mined before the 1977 Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act. Coordinates are the problem area's.
  4. MSHA, Mines dataset (Mine Data Retrieval System)
    Every mine registered with MSHA since the 1970s; a mine reads Abandoned or Abandoned and Sealed when its operator reported that status. Refreshed weekly.
  5. US Census Bureau, 2023 cartographic county boundaries (1:500,000)
    Each feature's county is assigned by its coordinates against these boundaries, not copied from the source file.
  6. GAO-20-238, Abandoned Hardrock Mines (March 2020)
    Federal agencies had identified at least 140,000 abandoned hardrock mine features on federal land and estimated more than 390,000 more not yet captured in their databases.
  7. Abandoned Hardrock Mine Reclamation (AHMR) Program, US Department of the Interior
    The program the USGS inventory is compiled for. Its appropriations and the 674,000 field-confirmed feature count on this page were provided by the program manager, Office of Environmental Policy and Compliance, and are cited with permission (2026-09-08).
  8. IMCC-NAAMLP Hardrock AML Report
    Page 48 carries the two figures this page leans on: USGS estimates 633,181 of the 725,690 mine features it recorded from historic topographic maps, 87 percent, are hardrock; and state and federal agencies have submitted more than 724,000 AML features to the national database being built, already more than the historic maps hold. Year-by-year AHMR funding is on page 35.