STRATACA
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Fresh out of high school in 1975, Myron Marcotte started as a dock worker at Carey Salt's East Plant.
He wasn't sure if he was cut out for the new job. His wife, Connie, convinced him to stay.
A year later, he began working in the Carey Salt - now Hutchinson Salt - mine and eventually worked up to Underground Mine Supervisor.
In 2013, Marcotte hopped across the railroad tracks to become Mine Specialist at the Kansas Underground Salt Museum (now Strataca), continuing his then 37-year stint working 650 feet below Kansas.
Now, he's ready to leave the mine, for the most part.
Recounting his first day underground for Strataca's "Miner's Life" exhibit, "it was extremely exciting, and I had goosebumps the whole day," Marcotte said.
He worked every job underground, from undercutting, blasting, train operating, and hoisting out salt.
Marcotte says there's nowhere in the 150 miles of mined out tunnels he has yet to see.
When the Reno County Historical Society, Hutchinson Salt Company, and Underground Vaults and Storage began building a museum, they called on Marcotte to help identify artifacts and stage abandoned machinery he once operated for the public to see.
One vehicle, lovingly named the "Myronmobile," was featured in a 2006 episode of "Dirty Jobs" and drove the show's host, Mike Rowe, to where the miners were working that day.
In Strataca's 15 years of operation, hundreds of thousands of guests from around the world have seen the displays he helped to make.
Always an admirer of Emerson Carey, Carey Salt's founder, Marcotte and RCHS's Lynn Ledeboer wrote a book about Carey's rags-to-riches story, published in 2019.
Marcotte regularly recounts his lifetime of experiences with the mine during Scouting Overnights hosted underground.
During his time as Mine Specialist, if a tour guide ever asked Marcotte a question he couldn't answer, he said it was his job to make something up. He has also served as an unofficial counselor to museum staff, helping them through personally troubling times and life events.
Marcotte may be leaving the mine, but the legacy he's left will last for generations.
Strataca congratulates Myron on his retirement and is grateful for his contributions to the museum and Hutchinson community.
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