Cumberland Caverns

By Larry E. Matthews

cooperation between churches in Seattle, Washington and churches in St. Petersburg, Russia This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0966354729
• ISBN13: 9780966354720
• Release Date: October 2005
• Publisher: Greyhound Press
• Length: 188 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A Note From The Author.

The First Edition of "Cumberland Caverns" was printed in 1989 by the National Speleological Society (NSS). At 318 pages long, this is one of the most extensive histories of any American cave ever written. This Edition went out-of-print from the publisher in 2002, but occasionally a new copy can still be found. A new, updated and re-formated Second Edition was published in October, 2005. This new edition contains 37 new photographs and fourteen larger, more easily read maps. It is printed in an 8.5 X 11 inch format, whereas the First Edition was 5 X 8. Unfortunately, nearly a dozen old, black & white photographs that were in the First Edition were lost in a house fire and do not appear in the Second Edition. At the time the First Edition was written, Cumberland Caverns was the longest mapped cave in Tennessee with over 27 miles of mapped passages. One of the historic entrances to the cave was known as Henshaw Cave and the remains of an 1812 saltpeter mine are found there. This entrance is also the entrance currently used by the commercial cave for the tour. The other entrance was known as Higggenbotham Cave and it was discovered in 1810 by Aaron Higgenbotham. This cave was extensively explored during the 1800's and was a popular destination for the local residents. Dances were held in the Big Room, over a mile from the entrance. Perhaps 5 or 6 miles were explored before World War II. After World War II, members of the National Speleological Society began to explore the cave and made amazing discoveries in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. The complete history of the cave from the earliest explorations in 1810 up to the present are given in this book. The book is profusely illustrated with maps and photographs. Larry E. Matthews Professional Geologist