Big Mountain (Oklahoma)

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Big Mountain
Deer Mountain
USA Oklahoma location map.svg
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Big Mountain
Location of Big Mountain in Oklahoma
Highest point
Elevation 1,145 ft (349 m)
Coordinates 34°24′55″N95°36′52″W / 34.41528°N 95.61444°W / 34.41528; -95.61444 Coordinates: 34°24′55″N95°36′52″W / 34.41528°N 95.61444°W / 34.41528; -95.61444  
Geography
Location Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, United States
Parent range Kiamichi Mountains

Big Mountain is a mountain in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma. It is part of the Kiamichi Mountains, a subrange of the Ouachita Mountains.

Pushmataha County, Oklahoma County in the United States

Pushmataha County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 11,572. Its county seat is Antlers.

Kiamichi Mountains

The Kiamichi Mountains are a mountain range in southeastern Oklahoma. A subrange within the larger Ouachita Mountains that extend from Oklahoma to western Arkansas, the Kiamichi Mountains sit within Le Flore, Pushmataha, and McCurtain counties near the towns of Poteau and Albion. The foothills of the Kiamichi Mountains sit within Haskell County, Northern Le Flore County, and Northern Pittsburg County. Its peaks, which line up south of the Kiamichi River, reach 2,500 feet in elevation. The range is the namesake of Kiamichi Country, the official tourism designation for southeastern Oklahoma.

Ouachita Mountains

The Ouachita Mountains, simply referred to as the Ouachitas, are a mountain range in western Arkansas and southeastern Oklahoma. They are formed by a thick succession of highly deformed Paleozoic strata constituting the Ouachita Fold and Thrust Belt, one of the important orogenic belts of North America. The Ouachitas continue in the subsurface to the southeast where they make a poorly understood connection with the Appalachians and to the southwest where they join with the Marathon area of West Texas. Together with the Ozark Plateaus, the Ouachitas form the U.S. Interior Highlands. The highest natural point is Mount Magazine at 2,753 feet.

Contents

Geology

The summit of Big Mountain is 1,145 feet above sea level. It is located 5.5 miles northeast of Moyers, Oklahoma. [1] Buck Creek forms its southern limit. Pine Creek forms its northern limit. The Kiamichi River forms its eastern limit, and Kimbrough Creek forms its western limit. The mountain is considered to form the southern geographic limit of Johns Valley.

Moyers, Oklahoma Unincorporated community in Oklahoma, United States

Moyers is a small unincorporated community located in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, United States.

Buck Creek (Kiamichi River tributary) river in the United States of America

Buck Creek is a 38.9-mile-long (62.6 km) stream in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma. It flows generally southward from its headwaters in the western Kiamichi Mountains to its confluence with the Kiamichi River.

Kiamichi River lake of the United States of America

The Kiamichi River is a river in southeastern Oklahoma. A tributary of the Red River, its headwaters rise on Pine Mountain in the Ouachita Mountains near the Arkansas border. From its source in LeFlore County, Oklahoma it flows approximately 177 miles (285 km) to its confluence with the Red River south of Hugo, Oklahoma.

History

Big Mountain has also in the past been called Deer Mountain.

During World War II the area was the site of two lethal air crashes. British pilots operating from a Royal Air Force base in Texas crashed into White Rock Mountain and Big Mountain, killing four crew men. Two planes were destroyed. On February 20, 2000 the AT6 Monument was dedicated in the fliers' honor at the crash site on Big Mountain. Over 1,000 people attended the ceremony, and the story was carried by the British Broadcasting Corporation and many newspapers around the world.

World War II 1939–1945 global war

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 50 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

Royal Air Force Aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces

The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's aerial warfare force. Formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world. Following victory over the Central Powers in 1918 the RAF emerged as, at the time, the largest air force in the world. Since its formation, the RAF has taken a significant role in British military history. In particular, it played a large part in the Second World War where it fought its most famous campaign, the Battle of Britain.

AT6 Monument

The AT6 Monument is a granite memorial to Royal Air Force cadets who were killed while on a training flight during World War II. It stands on Big Mountain, north of Moyers, Oklahoma, in the United States, and was dedicated on February 20, 2000—the 57th anniversary of the deadly crashes.

Development

Big Mountain is the entry point for a vast acreage known locally as the Kiamichi Wilderness. The Wilderness was subdivided during the 1970s and 1980s as a land development scheme. It remains highly rural and isolated. There are relatively few homes; most dwellings are cabins. Phase One of the Kiamichi Wilderness, closer to the front of the mountain, contains passable roads. Electric and telephone service extend partway into the area. Phases Two and Three, each ranging successively to the west, are progressively isolated, and Phase Three is reachable only during dry weather, when creeks may be forded.

Many of the landowners are from the Dallas, Texas area and visit on weekends. They are known locally as “weekend warriors”. The residents of Big Mountain, although living in scattered isolation, have developed a cohesive social network which has spawned regular gatherings and support ranging from Friday night rattlesnake fries to a volunteer fire department.

The only entry to the area is via the road from the Kiamichi River valley. During the Kiamichi Wilderness’s early years this was controlled by a guard shack. During recent years, the entrance is monitored 24/7 by cameras and is manned frequently by a security officer. Land Owners and their guests are the only ones allowed on the mountain. The AT6 Monument is a short way into Phase One from the guard shack, with good roads and a directional sign allowing for easy access.

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Honobia is an unincorporated community on the border between western LeFlore County, Oklahoma and eastern Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, 15 miles southeast of Talihina.

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References

  1. ↑ USGS data made available on http://www.mountainzone.com/mountains/detail.asp?fid=1900456.
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