Ducktown Basin Museum and the Burra Burra Mine preserve the history of copper mining in Tennessee’s Copper Basin, where copper was discovered in 1843 and industrial development expanded after 1836. The Burra Burra Mine became the basin’s most productive mine, yielding more than 15 million tons of ore over about 60 years before closing in 1958 with one of North America’s deepest vertical shafts. The surviving complex also reflects the basin’s severe environmental damage from smelting and deforestation, followed by major re-greening after mining ended in 1987. Today the site interprets the region’s geology, industry, workers, and long environmental recovery.