Buzz
Numerous caves are famous for their shimmering pools, awe-inspiring rock formations, twisting pathways, and magical "chambers." People from all corners of the globe visit these natural wonders, marveling at and learning about the hidden beauty of these underground realms. Yet, not all caves are merely a spectacle of nature or serve an educational purpose.
The caves on this list, at various points in time, were put to use for unconventional and occasionally strange purposes that go far beyond just exploration. Let’s dive in and explore the surprising uses that you might encounter when venturing into a cave.
10. Social Gatherings, Cockfighting, and Illegal Liquor Production
The Lost Sea, the largest underground lake in the United States, resides in Sweetwater, Tennessee, within Craighead Caverns. However, this aquatic feature isn't the only noteworthy aspect that the caverns once offered.
In 1915, the decision was made to open this vast cave system to the public, leading to the creation of a dance floor in one of the expansive upper chambers. Along with musical and theatrical performances, cockfights became a regular underground spectacle for those with a thirst for blood. The caves also housed illicit liquor stills, where bootleggers distilled moonshine.
9. Klan Headquarters, Prohibition Speakeasy, and Music Venue
The Fantastic Caverns, located in Missouri's Ozark Mountains, which now feature a 'drive-through' tour run by the Trimble family, owners of Branson's Shepherd of the Hills Outdoor Theatre, were once used for far darker purposes.
In 1867, a dozen members of the Springfield Women’s Athletic Club explored the caves at the invitation of the owner, John Knox. After their visit, the caves were left untouched until the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) began to hold meetings in the Grand Ballroom, a large chamber within the cave system. Thankfully, the period during which the white supremacist group used the caves was short-lived.
After the police finally put an end to the KKK meetings, the caverns were repurposed once again. A speakeasy took residence there shortly after Prohibition banned the brewing, distilling, or even possession of alcoholic beverages. This underground establishment lasted longer than the Klan's brief occupation and offered patrons not only illicit alcohol but also gambling and a variety of other indulgences.
Once the police shut down the speakeasy, Fantastic Caverns found a new commercial purpose in the 1950s, when a country music show called Farm-A-Rama was filmed in the cave’s auditorium. Despite appearances by notable country music stars like Tom T. Hall and Buck Owens, the show’s stay at the caverns was short-lived, much like the previous less savory uses of the caves.
8. Sanctuary on the Underground Railroad
As noted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Sand Cave in Illinois, located west of Crow Knob and north of the Miller Grove Community, served as a refuge on the Underground Railroad, providing shelter and safety for runaway slaves seeking freedom in the north. Hidden deep within the dense forests and rugged landscape, Sand Cave wasn’t the only safe spot in the area; others like Ox-Lot, Brasher Cave, and Fat Man’s Squeeze offered further places of concealment for those fleeing slavery.
7. Underground Theatre
In July 2013, Samuel Beckett’s play Not I was staged in the underground theater of the Marble Arch Caves in Northern Ireland. The Happy Days Enniskillen International Beckett Festival, known for its unique site-specific performances, featured cantos read aloud by reporter Jessica Campbell and others, following the play's presentation.
Campbell describes Clara Simpson’s portrayal of Not I as both powerful and precise: 'With only her mouth illuminated by a spotlight in the darkness, she flawlessly performed the rapid-paced Beckett play, first in English, then in French, leaving the audience amazed by her talent and wondering what would follow.'
Following this, the audience departed by boat, starting their 'journey through Hell,' as the voices of the lost echoed around them. Campbell then read aloud Dante’s dark descriptions of Hell. However, the atmosphere shifted when opera singer Ruby Philogene began her 'angelic rendition of Dido’s ‘Lament,’' dispelling the darkness and bringing hope, before leading the audience from the depths of Hell into the light of the natural world above, singing ‘Amazing Grace.’
6. Concert Venue
On July 16, 2022, the Arwah Cave in Sohra, Meghalaya, India, was transformed into a concert venue when a musical performance took center stage. Musicians played percussion and string instruments, while vocalists performed. The production, titled 'KI Sur Na Pubon,' meaning 'message from the cave,' brought an extraordinary musical experience to the cave’s depths.
Alan West Kharkongor, leader of the Clean Sohra Campaign, explained that the production's message emphasizes the responsibility to protect and preserve nature, whether that be the cave, streams, or waterfalls. Meanwhile, the folk-fusion band Kit Shangpliang of Summersalt, who performed at the event, viewed it as an opportunity to promote young musicians while showcasing one of Meghalaya’s scenic natural wonders.
5. Training for Extraterrestrial Exploration
As journalist Paul Rudder highlights, NASA experts believe that caves on other planets, such as those on Mars, may be among the best places to search for signs of life. These caves offer natural protection from harmful cosmic rays and extreme shifts in temperature.
NASA already possesses the robotic technology needed for these searches, but the robots require testing and refinement before being sent into alien caves. Luckily, Earth has caves with conditions similar to those on Mars, which NASA’s Project Braille can utilize for testing.
The artificial intelligence system known as NeBula will empower the robots to analyze data and make decisions autonomously, but it will need to be shielded from extreme temperatures and radiation. SPOT, a robot created by Boston Dynamics, is designed to provide that necessary protection. It is also responsive to NeBula’s advanced commands and high-level instructions.
SPOT is not only equipped with wheels, but it can also walk, allowing it to navigate rugged terrain without the need for roads or smooth surfaces. This versatility is vital since 'robots won’t be able to communicate with scientists once inside the caves.' SPOT is capable of seeing, hearing, and processing information autonomously, all while carrying essential scientific equipment and maintaining stability, speed, and endurance as it explores another world.
SPOT’s exploration of Earth’s caves serves as a rehearsal for NASA’s broader ambition: developing robots that can operate independently on missions with total autonomy.
4. Healing Therapy
In the Bavarian Alps of Germany, the Salt Healing Cavern Berchtesgaden offers therapeutic benefits from its rich rock salt deposits. Jan Freiherr von Werthern, the cavern’s operations manager, explains that visitors can soak in the natural energy of millions of tons of salt from an ancient ocean that existed 250 million years ago, easing stress and encouraging profound relaxation.
During a stay of three weeks, where guests spend two hours daily in the cave, many report improvements in a variety of conditions, including hay fever, depression, asthma, bronchitis, rheumatism, allergies, and insomnia. Part of the experience involves a meditative practice where visitors observe the salt vein patterns while absorbing the healing energy.
Although this type of therapy is not yet universally acknowledged by the medical community as a complementary treatment, anecdotal evidence suggests its effectiveness. One elderly man claimed the therapy made him feel as if his 'batteries had been fully recharged,' leaving him relaxed, revitalized, healthier, and refreshed.
3. Cave Filming Locations
Caverns have been a popular backdrop for films across a range of genres. Some notable examples include the horror flick The Descent (2005), the historical drama A Passage to India (1984), the action-thriller Sanctum (2011), and the sci-fi adventure Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008). The dark, twisting passageways of caves, often home to bats and other eerie creatures, hold an undeniable appeal for filmmakers crafting stories of tension and mystery.
A recent film shot in a cave setting is Thirteen Lives (2022), directed by Ron Howard and featuring Viggo Mortensen, Colin Farrell, and Joel Edgerton. Based on the 2018 rescue mission in Thailand, the movie depicts the dramatic efforts of officials, experts, and Navy SEALs to rescue a soccer team and their coach trapped for 18 days inside the Tham Luang Nang Non cave. Through stunning cinematography, the film immerses the audience in the claustrophobic conditions of the cave’s narrow, waterlogged corridors.
Filming Thirteen Lives proved to be a terrifying experience, as Farrell shared with Entertainment Tonight. He recalled the complex set, an elaborate cave system modeled after real caverns and filled with water. Farrell, not a strong swimmer, found the filming process intimidating, noting that once the cast and crew were inside the constructed caves, there was no easy way out.
The underwater scenes added another layer of fear, filmed in dark, submerged environments where Farrell struggled to orient himself. He explained, 'There's a lot to be said for being able to look up in water and see the surface. So when you can’t, and there’s actually a ceiling over your head, and no air at all, it just wreaks havoc on my mind.' Luckily, both the cast and the real-life survivors of the cave ordeal managed to make it through their respective trials.
2. Air Raid Shelter, Ballroom, and Music Venue
The St. Clements Caves, located in West Hill, Hastings, East Sussex, England, were naturally formed but also shaped through sand mining. While there are rumors suggesting the caves were used by smugglers, there is no solid evidence to support this. In reality, these caves served as a hospital, an air raid shelter during World War II, and later transformed into a ballroom and music venue, according to the Historical Hastings website.
During World War II, the caves, which had the capacity to hold 900 people, served dual purposes—protecting civilians as an air raid shelter while also providing a secure place to store important archives. Diana Tanner recalls how her family took refuge there every night during the war. The air raid shelters were equipped with triple-decker bunk beds so narrow that her mother tied her and her siblings in place to prevent them from falling off while sleeping. They would often wake up covered in a fine layer of damp sand.
Like many others, Diana’s mother was overcome with fear when bombs dropped nearby, and the concussive blasts would shake the ground. Terrified that another bomb might collapse the shelter, trapping them underground, Diana’s mother decided to end their nightly stays in the caves for good.
After the war, the caves were repurposed for various functions. The Rolling Stones and other famous bands performed there, turning the shelter into a ballroom. Other events, such as dinners and guided tours of the caves, were also held. Photographs from the Historical Hastings website capture contrasting moments—the somber atmosphere of wartime activities like children participating in a 'gas mask drill' in 1941, as well as the lively atmosphere of concerts and visitors lining up for tours.
1. Funerary Rites
In her online article for the Natural History Museum in London, Lisa Hendry writes that during the Ice Age, Britons engaged in cannibalism.
However, they were not driven to this behavior by hunger. As museum scientist Dr. Sylvia Bellows explains, the discovery of human remains in Gough's Cave in Cheddar, Somerset, England, revealed that the bones of a teenager and a young child had been chewed by others. Their long bones and ribs had been cracked open and gnawed to extract marrow and grease. Additionally, skulls were fashioned into drinking cups and bowls.
The remains belonged to the Magdalenians, a group of Cro-Magnon hunter-gatherers from southwest Europe. These people likely migrated from Belgium and the Netherlands around 15,000 years ago, when Britain and mainland Europe were still connected by a land bridge. The warming climate may have prompted their migration.
Cannibalism was not the result of a food shortage; there was plenty of animal meat. The transformation of skulls into vessels, a complex and deliberate process, hints at a potential symbolic or ritualistic significance. The act of cannibalism itself, along with the bone engravings, might have served as a means of commemorating the deceased's life and death.
