The plots sold off alright, but the town never became the booming resort the newspaper had hoped for.
Around 2,000 people lived here until their forced evacuation in 1985.
Photo credit:NPR.org
The trouble started with dust.
The draught would catch the loose dust and blow it into peoples homes and faces.
It was a nuisance.
Bliss was spraying used motor oil over his farm and horse arena to successfully suppress dust.
A single tool kept the dust down for several months.
Those who visited Bliss property were impressed by how well the technique worked.
It was not long before people began to hire him for his dust-suppressant services.
Around the same time, Bliss was hired for another job.
A chemical supplier company wanted Bliss to dispose off some industrial waste.
Unbeknownst to Bliss, the waste was laced with an extremely toxic compound known as dioxin.
At one farm near Moscow Mills, sixty-two horses died.
Some children also became ill, succumbing to headaches, nosebleeds, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.
With mounting pressure from the public, the EPA announced in 1983 that Times Beach was uninhabitable.
Two years later, the entire town was evacuated.
Today the park includes a chunk of old Route 66 including the historic bridge across the Meramec River.
Photo credit:NPR.org
A swampy area at Route 66 State Park, formerly the Times Beach.
Photo credit:Yinan Chen/Wikimedia
A trail in Route 66 State Park, formerly the Times Beach.
Photo credit:Yinan Chen/Wikimedia
Sources:Wikipedia/STLMag.com/Now I Know/Legends of America
