

Estimated cost of the project is $13,400,000. In addition to Birch, the plan includes construction of Copan Lake on Little Caney River, Sand Lake on Sand Creek, Candy Lake on Candy Creek, and Skiatook Lake on Hominy Creek, for management of the Verdigris River and tributaries. The project is part of the comprehensive plan for flood management and water conservation in the Verdigris River Basin. Other nearby points of interest for the history buff are Barnsdall's Main Street Oil Well which was completed in 1914, the Bareco Refinery complex south of Barnsdall and the Osage Indian Museum in Pawhuska, Okla.īirch Dam and Lake, a multipurpose project for flood management, water supply, water quality control, recreation, and fish and wildlife, was authorized for construction by the Flood Control Act of 1962.

There are buffalo, deer, and other wildlife on the 4,000-acre ranch. It traces the development of the southwest, through archeological specimens and artifacts. Woolaroc Ranch and Museum, located east of the project, is another interesting stop for the visitor.

At Bartlesville, located northeast of the project in Washington County, the first commercial oil well drilled in Oklahoma is a point of interest. Markers describe historic landmarks such as the James Bigheart grave at the family cemetery located just east of Barnsdall on Highway 11. Visitors interested in early Oklahoma history will find sightseeing in the Birch Lake area rewarding. Barnsdall who was considered the world's first oil refiner and was the founder of the refinery at the present site of the Bareco plant at Barnsdall. In 1921, the town was renamed in honor of T. A town soon began to develop and, in 1906, a post office was established and named for Chief Bigheart. In 1905, the Midland Valley Railroad reached the present site of Barnsdall. By an act of congress in 1906, the Osage Nation retained ownership of minerals, and the discovery of oil later made the Osages the richest Indians in the United States. government over mineral rights on the tribal lands. James Bigheart, who became one of the great Osage chiefs, helped negotiate with the U.S. This land consisted of 500,000 acres in what is now Osage County, Oklahoma.
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In 1870 (through a series of treaties and negotiations), the Osage Nation relinquished control of the Kansas lands and was forced to move to this area. The area in which Birch Lake is located was once occupied by prehistoric Indians and later was considered as Cherokee Indian Territory.
