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Marvel Cave
Marvel Cave is a privately owned cave located just west of Branson, Missouri, in Stone County. It is one of the main attractions of Silver Dollar City and is registered as a National Natural landmark.
The first recorded expedition of the cave was in 1869, led by Henry T. Blow. Marvel Cave was originally called Marble Cave, after explorers in 1882 saw what they thought was marble on the cave's ceiling. This started the Marble Cave Mining Company, although later it was realized that there was never any marble in the cave. The Marble Cave Mining Company ceased all operations after only four and a half years. William Lynch purchased the cave in 1889, and soon after opened the cave to the public. In 1950, Hugo Herschend leased the cave for 99 years. The Herschends made renovations to the cave, and later opened the popular theme park, Silver Dollar City, on the surface above the cave. Marvel Cave is one of the largest caves in Missouri, with one of the largest cave entry rooms (the Cathedral Room) of any cave in North America, and is one of the longest running tourist attractions in the Ozarks.
According to Silver Dollar City park legend, a local group of vigilantes who later turned into outlaws called the Bald Knobbers were known for throwing people through the sinkhole into Devil's Den around the mid 19th century. Though it's possible that roving Bushwhackers and outlaws could have chosen to dispose of their victims through this sinkhole, the Bald Knobbers did not form until 1883 (starting-up in neighboring Taney County) and were replaced by an unofficial chapter in 1886 within nearby Christian County, with unofficial chapters in other counties (including Stone County, where the cave is located) later than that.
Despite there being no written evidence to substantiate it, it's possible that Stone County's unofficial Bald Knobbers used the cave sometime in 1889, between the time the mining operations ceased and late October of that year when it was purchased for sightseeing tours.
There is evidence that the Spanish explored the cave in 1541, hoping to uncover riches and possibly the fountain of youth. There is a legend that the Spanish buried gold in the cave. The first known expedition was in 1869 and led by Henry T. Blow of St. Louis, a lead mining magnate. He explored the cave with six other miners. One by one, the miners lowered themselves down into the sinkhole. They carried lanterns for light and spent hours studying the cave walls carefully searching for signs of mineral deposits. They went as far as the Shoe Room, because on one side was the Gulf of Doom, which they believed was the bottomless pit after throwing rocks down the Gulf of Doom and hearing no sound. On the other side was the Cloud Room, which was filled to the ceiling with bat guano. The miners returned to the surface late that evening having failed to discover the lead ore they sought, but were convinced that the flat ceiling of the Shoe Room contained marble. Their report gained the interest of area locals who decided to name the cave Marble Cave.
No more expeditions took place until 1882 when another group of entrepreneurs, led by Mr. T. Hodges Jones and Truman S. Powell of Barton County, entered the cave in hopes of finding lead. Jones and Powell found huge amounts of guano and the flat ceiling, which they also believed to be marble.
In 1884, Mr. T. Hodge Jones bought the property and, with several of his friends, formed the Marble Cave Mining and Manufacturing Company to mine the marble from the cave. The company hired a geologist, and it was proved that what looked like marble on the ceiling of the Shoe Room was really limestone. To keep the company alive they mined out the guano and sold it for $700 a ton. The guano was used for gunpowder and fertilizer. The miners filled ore carts with guano, then the carts were pulled by donkeys to the Cathedral Room, and the carts were lifted out of the cave by a pulley system. In 1889, after four and a half years, all the guano was mined out. Marble Cave Mining, Co. closed all operations.
Marmaros (or Μαρμαρος, Greek for "Marble") was a small town that formed along with the Marble Cave Mining and Manufacturing Company in 1884. Originally called Marble City, it was located on the rough hilltop near the cave and recorded a plat map at the courthouse in Galena, Missouri. Marmaros contained a hotel, general store, pottery shop, white oak furniture factory, and was rumored to have a saloon. The town turned into a ghost town in 1889 after the Marble Cave Mining, Co. closed. When the Lynches bought the cave, the town was burned to the ground by the local group of vigilantes known as the Bald Knobbers.
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Marvel Cave
Marvel Cave is a privately owned cave located just west of Branson, Missouri, in Stone County. It is one of the main attractions of Silver Dollar City and is registered as a National Natural landmark.
The first recorded expedition of the cave was in 1869, led by Henry T. Blow. Marvel Cave was originally called Marble Cave, after explorers in 1882 saw what they thought was marble on the cave's ceiling. This started the Marble Cave Mining Company, although later it was realized that there was never any marble in the cave. The Marble Cave Mining Company ceased all operations after only four and a half years. William Lynch purchased the cave in 1889, and soon after opened the cave to the public. In 1950, Hugo Herschend leased the cave for 99 years. The Herschends made renovations to the cave, and later opened the popular theme park, Silver Dollar City, on the surface above the cave. Marvel Cave is one of the largest caves in Missouri, with one of the largest cave entry rooms (the Cathedral Room) of any cave in North America, and is one of the longest running tourist attractions in the Ozarks.
According to Silver Dollar City park legend, a local group of vigilantes who later turned into outlaws called the Bald Knobbers were known for throwing people through the sinkhole into Devil's Den around the mid 19th century. Though it's possible that roving Bushwhackers and outlaws could have chosen to dispose of their victims through this sinkhole, the Bald Knobbers did not form until 1883 (starting-up in neighboring Taney County) and were replaced by an unofficial chapter in 1886 within nearby Christian County, with unofficial chapters in other counties (including Stone County, where the cave is located) later than that.
Despite there being no written evidence to substantiate it, it's possible that Stone County's unofficial Bald Knobbers used the cave sometime in 1889, between the time the mining operations ceased and late October of that year when it was purchased for sightseeing tours.
There is evidence that the Spanish explored the cave in 1541, hoping to uncover riches and possibly the fountain of youth. There is a legend that the Spanish buried gold in the cave. The first known expedition was in 1869 and led by Henry T. Blow of St. Louis, a lead mining magnate. He explored the cave with six other miners. One by one, the miners lowered themselves down into the sinkhole. They carried lanterns for light and spent hours studying the cave walls carefully searching for signs of mineral deposits. They went as far as the Shoe Room, because on one side was the Gulf of Doom, which they believed was the bottomless pit after throwing rocks down the Gulf of Doom and hearing no sound. On the other side was the Cloud Room, which was filled to the ceiling with bat guano. The miners returned to the surface late that evening having failed to discover the lead ore they sought, but were convinced that the flat ceiling of the Shoe Room contained marble. Their report gained the interest of area locals who decided to name the cave Marble Cave.
No more expeditions took place until 1882 when another group of entrepreneurs, led by Mr. T. Hodges Jones and Truman S. Powell of Barton County, entered the cave in hopes of finding lead. Jones and Powell found huge amounts of guano and the flat ceiling, which they also believed to be marble.
In 1884, Mr. T. Hodge Jones bought the property and, with several of his friends, formed the Marble Cave Mining and Manufacturing Company to mine the marble from the cave. The company hired a geologist, and it was proved that what looked like marble on the ceiling of the Shoe Room was really limestone. To keep the company alive they mined out the guano and sold it for $700 a ton. The guano was used for gunpowder and fertilizer. The miners filled ore carts with guano, then the carts were pulled by donkeys to the Cathedral Room, and the carts were lifted out of the cave by a pulley system. In 1889, after four and a half years, all the guano was mined out. Marble Cave Mining, Co. closed all operations.
Marmaros (or Μαρμαρος, Greek for "Marble") was a small town that formed along with the Marble Cave Mining and Manufacturing Company in 1884. Originally called Marble City, it was located on the rough hilltop near the cave and recorded a plat map at the courthouse in Galena, Missouri. Marmaros contained a hotel, general store, pottery shop, white oak furniture factory, and was rumored to have a saloon. The town turned into a ghost town in 1889 after the Marble Cave Mining, Co. closed. When the Lynches bought the cave, the town was burned to the ground by the local group of vigilantes known as the Bald Knobbers.