Meramec Caverns is the collective name for a cavern system in the

Ozarks The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, as well as a small area in the southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover ...

, near Stanton,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

. The caverns were formed from the erosion of large

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

deposits over millions of years.

Pre-Columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era, also known as the pre-contact era, or as the pre-Cabraline era specifically in Brazil, spans from the initial peopling of the Americas in the Upper Paleolithic to the onset of European col ...

Native American artifacts have been found in the caverns. Currently the cavern system is a

tourist attraction A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of natural beaut ...

, with more than fifty billboards along

Interstate 44 Interstate 44 (I-44) is an Interstate Highway in the central United States. Although it is nominally an east–west road as it is even-numbered, it follows a more southwest–northeast alignment. Its western terminus is in Wichita Falls, T ...

and is considered one of the primary attractions along former U.S. Highway 66. Meramec Caverns is the most-visited cave in Missouri with some 150,000 visitors annually.

History

The Meramec Caverns have existed for the past 400 million years, slowly forming through deposits of limestone. In centuries past, Native Americans used the cavern system for shelter. The first cave west of the Mississippi River to be explored by Europeans, it was first visited in 1722 by a French miner. During the 18th century, the cave was used for extracting

saltpeter Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with a sharp, salty, bitter taste and the chemical formula . It is a potassium salt of nitric acid. This salt consists of potassium cations and nitrate anions , and is therefore an alkali metal nitrate ...

for the manufacture of

gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, charcoal (which is mostly carbon), and potassium nitrate, potassium ni ...

. In the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

era, the Union Army used the caves as a saltpeter plant, but the plant was discovered and destroyed by Confederate guerrillas, likely including the future infamous outlaw

Jesse James Jesse Woodson James (September 5, 1847April 3, 1882) was an American outlaw, Bank robbery, bank and Train robbery, train robber, guerrilla and leader of the James–Younger Gang. Raised in the "Little Dixie (Missouri), Little Dixie" area of M ...

. According to local legend, James and his brother and partner in crime Frank used the caves as a hideout in the 1870s. However, there is scant historical evidence to support this tradition. One legend in particular claims that a

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

tracking the Jameses sat in front of the cave, waiting for Jesse and his gang to emerge; however, they had found another exit. In 1933, the extended cave system was discovered, revealing the present , and was introduced to the public as a tourist attraction in 1935 by Lester B. Dill, who invented the bumper sticker as a means of promoting the caverns. In 1960, Meramec Caverns rented

billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

space in the caverns. The owners claimed this was the only underground billboard in the world. In midsummer of 1972, Meramec Caverns provided the cave settings for '' Tom Sawyer'', a musical film which was released to theaters that following year. In the 1998 movie

Deep Impact (film) ''Deep Impact'' is a 1998 American science fiction disaster film directed by Mimi Leder, written by Bruce Joel Rubin and Michael Tolkin, and starring Robert Duvall, Téa Leoni, Elijah Wood, Vanessa Redgrave, Maximilian Schell, and Morg ...

a reference is made to the limestone caves of Missouri as the location of the ARC shelter.

Noted attractions

Wine Room

The fifth level of Meramec Caverns includes a "Wine Room." The Wine Room is home to the world's rarest cave formation, The Wine Table. The onyx table stands six feet high and is supported on three natural legs. Known as an

aragonite Aragonite is a carbonate mineral and one of the three most common naturally occurring crystal forms of calcium carbonate (), the others being calcite and vaterite. It is formed by biological and physical processes, including precipitation fr ...

formation, this structure was composed almost entirely underwater. The Wine Room and the Wine Table are adorned with grape-like clusters called botryoids. Originally called the Wine Room because of these grape clusters, the cave now claims that it is called that because of the "whining" that visitors do when they learn that the room is accessible only after climbing numerous stairs (a total of 58 steps).

"Greatest Show Under the Earth"

The Cavern also contains a massive sheet wall of formations formed during the past several thousand years, which the cave calls its "stage curtain" and which is also used for displaying the light and sound show called "Greatest Show Under the Earth".

"Hollywood"

A room within the cavern was used for

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

productions, most notably '' Tom Sawyer'' (1973). In the particular movie, the site was used as the cave system where Tom Sawyer ( Johnny Whitaker) and Becky Thatcher (

Jodie Foster Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster (born November 19, 1962) is an American actress and filmmaker. Foster started her career as a child actor before establishing herself as leading actress in film. She has received List of awards and nominations re ...

) got lost in a cave, as well as Tom Sawyer and

Huckleberry Finn Huckleberry "Huck" Finn is a fictional character created by Mark Twain who first appeared in the book ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876) and is the protagonist and narrator of its sequel, '' Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884). He is 12 ...

( Jeff East) find the hidden

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

. An episode of '' Lassie'' was also filmed in this part of the cave.

Mirror Room

The Mirror Room is a room within the cavern that contains a stream of water about deep. However, when a group of lights are turned on, the depth of the water is perceived by many to be as great as , due to the reflection of the cavern's roof on the undisturbed water.

Ballroom

First used in 1890, The Ballroom is a room in the cavern system that was used in earlier times as a room for

square dance A square dance is a dance for four couples, or eight dancers in total, arranged in a square, with one couple on each side, facing the middle of the square. Square dances are part of a broad spectrum of dances known by various names: country dan ...

s and other community events. It is now one of the first stops on the tour and is used for a few annual concerts by the

Lester Family Lester is an ancient Anglo-Saxon surname and given name. People Given name * Lester Bangs (1948–1982), American music critic * Lester Oliver Bankhead (1912–1997), American architect * Lester W. Bentley (1908–1972), American artist fro ...

References

External links

Meramec Caverns official website
at AmericasCave.com *{{cite news , work=Riverfront Times , title=Best of St. Louis: Best Kitsch , first=Jill , last=Posey-Smith , url=http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2000-09-27/best-of-st-louis/best-kitsch/full , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622124516/http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2000-09-27/best-of-st-louis/best-kitsch/full , url-status=dead , archive-date=2011-06-22 , date=2000-09-27 Caves of Missouri Landforms of Franklin County, Missouri Show caves in the United States Limestone caves Roadside attractions in Missouri Tourist attractions along U.S. Route 66 Tourist attractions in Franklin County, Missouri