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 Clostridium
   
Location: SF Bay Area
Gender: Male
We'll see the city's ripped backsides
 |  | The Greatest Cave Explorer Ever Known and the Ghosts of Mammoth Cave
< on 10/22/2013 4:10 AM >
|  | | | Everyone knows Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, the longest cave in the World, originally one of the largest, and America's second world-famous tourist attraction.
(BTW, as some one who has repeatedly visited Mammoth Cave and absolutely loves its history and geology, it is a hideously ugly cave).
Far fewer people know about the how Mammoth Cave became a National Park, and the soap opera that revolved around it, culminating in the story of The Greatest Cave Explorer Ever Known, Floyd Collins, and the ghosts that remain scattered throughout the park.
Introduction
Mammoth Cave was officially discovered in 1797, and gained international renown as early as 1816, though it did not really become a tourist attraction until the 1830s.
One of the earliest people to take advantage of the fame of Mammoth Cave was William Bell, who in the 1820s had built a lavish inn at nearby Glasgow Junction (now Park City). Bell's Tavern, famed throughout Kentucky for its peach brandy and honey, was popularized by travelers, tourists to Mammoth Cave, and the leading politicians of the day until it burned down in 1858. Bell's widow began building an even larger and more lavish tavern until the Civil War stopped the projects in its tracks. The ruins of the second Bell Tavern, never completed, still remain.
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Due to the poor, porous soil that created the Mammoth Cave karst system, this was always an unfertile region of Kentucky. By the 1910s, as tourists continued to visit Mammoth Cave, the families farming around this region began to take interest in the hundreds of cave entrances pockmarking their property. In what would become known as the Kentucky Cave Wars, dozens of families set up shop with show caves, advertising their own caves to the tourist hordes trying to reach the "classical" entrance in the hopes of siphoning off some of that monetary bonanza.
The ORIGINAL Mammoth Cave entrance (though as all the caves connected into a single system, the rival caves had a valid claim)
To fight against the competition, the new tourist caves were known to misdirect tourists (claiming that their cave was THE Mammoth Cave), lie (claiming that Mammoth Cave was closed) and sabotage their competition (sneaking into opposing caves and blowing up cave formations to make them more ugly). Rival tourist groups would pelt each other with rocks.
 (source: public domain, Appalachian History.net)
Floyd Collins
Enter Floyd Collins.
 (source: public domain, Wikipedia)
The youngest son of hardscrabble farmers along the Flint Ridge, had a dream, a dream to make money. Dubbing himself "the Greatest Cave Explorer Ever Known", Collins had found Crystal Cave on his family's property, opening it to tourists in 1917. Though the tourists that did come to Crystal Cave were wowed, most did not bother to visit as the cave was too far from the famous Mammoth Cave and his family continued to struggle. Floyd decided to go look for more caves closer to the main road.
In 1925 Collins explored and found Sand Cave, 
returning once with large stalactites and a claim it connected with Mammoth Cave itself,but while exploring it a 27-lb rock fell on his left leg and trapped him in the cavern. After being discovered by family and friends, he was kept alive by lowering food and water while rescuers frantically dug toward him, though the cave was too unstable to go fast. Meanwhile, news traveled like lightning and soon became the biggest national headline since the sinking of the Titanic. Some 10,000 journalists and onlookers congregated around the site, which had the literal feel of a circus. However, the rescue operation failed after two rock slides cut Collins off from help and he quickly declined. Thirteen days later, Collins died. The rescuers would not reach him until four days after his death. The media circus of Floyd Collins brought public attention back to Mammoth Cave, which was made a National Park in 1925. Fears about the safety of the show caves and the renewed interest in a public park allowed the government to seize much of the area through eminent domain, leaving behind ruins of farms and show caves and hundreds of bitter families. Some of the ruins still remain scattered around the park.
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Crystal Cave
As for Floyd Collins, his brothers finally scrounged enough money to dig him out of Sand Cave another 80 days after he was first trapped and give him a decent burial, while his father, sick of the entire affair, sold the farm and Crystal Cave in 1927. Unfortunately, he did not read the fine print. Per the contract, the new owner acquired the family property, then dug up Floyd Collin's body, placed it in a glass coffin, and displayed Floyd Collins' tomb as a tourist attraction at Crystal Cave, bringing the tourists to Crystal Cave that Collins had never found in life. In 1929, Floyd Collins' body was stolen. It was recovered in a ditch, minus his left leg. His body was placed back in the glass coffin, now chained shut.
 (Source: public domain, http://frontierfol...loyd-c.html#photos)
Finally by the 1960s, the National Park acquired both Sand Cave and Crystal Cave, closing it. Crystal Cave is only occasionally open for special tours. At the request of the Collins Family, the NPS finally gave Floyd Collins his final rest. In 1989, Floyd Collins was buried at the old Mammoth Cave Baptist Church, under the headstone engraved with the words: "Greatest Cave Explorer Ever Known."
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Nearby, a unpaved 1.5 mile road leads to the Crystal Cave Area, with the Collins Family home and a Concessionaire Stand.
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Most visitors visiting Mammoth Cave today pass by a garish strip of tourist traps at Cave City. Just within park boundaries lie the remains of one of them, possibly swallowed up by the park in the 1960s with many other private properties.
 (Source: http://whimsicalwill.tripod.com/)
Wondering Woods appears to be Christian-oriented attraction. Now only the Chapel remains as a habitat for bats. Please don't bother them.
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Information taken from Wikipedia, Roadside America, the NPS, Appalachian History.net, Frontier Folk.net and Whimiscal Will
Where I Encounter a Ghost!
...in the form of the burliest park ranger I have ever seen.
Notice that I never managed to photograph the entrance of Crystal Cave itself. The cave is now quite isolated. I visited on a cold winter day (22F) and hiked nearly an hour from the closed gate where I parked. After looking at the buildings, I then took a wrong turn and missed the entrance of Crystal Cave itself. Even with an overcoat and sweater I was freezing my butt off and the entire time I cursed at my stupidity. It felt like something from the movie Fargo.
On the way back, I saw a ranger truck pulled up at the house, which meant he had opened the gate. Great, I thought, maybe the ranger could give me a ride back to my car. However, I couldn't find him, and eventually went back down the road (I later figured out he went to the cave, not realizing I had missed it). Some 40 minutes later, I see the ranger truck drive up behind me. Due to its distance, it seemed like a dream. I was kinda hoping he would offer me a ride.
I wave.
He accelerates until he is right ahead of me, then stops.
The ranger jumps out of his truck. It is a big 6-ft guy with a crew-cut that reminds me of the military.
"Going for a hike eh?" he asks somewhat sarcastically.
"Yes..."
"Lemme see your pockets." he continues.
"Huh?" I say.
"I just need to see that you aren't armed," the ranger says, and flashes me his gun in the holster. I am not sure whether he was instructing me or signifying that HE was armed.
I empty my pockets as quickly as possible. There is only my wallet.
"That your car out at the front gate?" he asked
"Yes."
"Sir, do you know that your license has expired since July?" I notice my license written on his hand.
"No...I thought I renewed it." I stammered.
"Kinda late, isn't it?" The ranger continues.
"I thought I renewed it back sometime in July."
"Well lets meet up at your car, and we can check your papers."
He proceeds to jump back into his truck and drives on ahead of me.
Ten minutes later I reach my car, and he's there looking at the license plates. Luckily I had stickers.
"Hm. It says 2012" he mutters, it seems to himself. I open the doors and show him my registration.
"Well, I guess the database hasn't been updated." The ranger says, awkwardly. I think he feels awkward for overreacting. He turns to me "Well, the gate's now open, you can see Crystal Cave if you want."
I am pretty freaked out by the whole thing. "No thanks, I think its too cold out now," I say, and I take off.
I have no idea what happened there, but I have not gone back.
Thanks for reading!
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sara'mer
 
Location: WNC
| | Re: The Greatest Cave Explorer Ever Known and the Ghosts of Mammoth Cave
<Reply # 1 on 10/22/2013 4:56 AM >
| | | | Nice read and pics - thanks for the history!
they call me the hyacinth girl |
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Arps
Location: Northern Indiana
Gender: Male
| | Re: The Greatest Cave Explorer Ever Known and the Ghosts of Mammoth Cave
<Reply # 2 on 10/23/2013 10:16 AM >
| | | | Very interesting and educational. Great pics, thank you for sharing.
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Clostridium
Location: SF Bay Area
Gender: Male
We'll see the city's ripped backsides
| | Re: The Greatest Cave Explorer Ever Known and the Ghosts of Mammoth Cave
<Reply # 3 on 10/24/2013 2:29 AM >
| | | | Thanks sara'mer and Arps!
There is apparently a fair amount of abandoned tourist traps scattered around over there. Never got around to finding most of them though, like the Bible minigolf course.
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