Limestone,
the stone in which many Ozark caves are formed covers much of the
60,000 square miles of the Ozark Plateau. It was in a limestone outcrop
that Bluff Dwellers Cavern was found and explored in 1925 by the owner
of the property, Arthur Browning and two surveyors employed by the
highway department, Bob Ford and Bryan Gilmore.
What the Browning family had underneath their farm was astonishing, a
network of subterranean corridors channeling the layers of rock like a
subway system. With each turn along the many pathways, new wonders came
to light. During excavation, artifacts were uncovered that dated back
to a Paleo culture that inhabited the Ozarks as far back as 7000 years
ago.
When the cave was first discovered in 1925, both entrances had been
hidden from man for more than 3000 years by a landslide. Mr. Browning
realized to open the cave to the public, that slide material would have
to be removed. During excavation, artifacts were discovered that turned
out to be substantial. Arrowheads, grinding stones, tools made of bone
and skeletal remains that date back to as early as 5000 B.C.
In the 1920's, an archaeologist from the Museum of the American Indian
spent 2 years in southwest Missouri and northwest Arkansas excavating
what he called rock shelters - the overhanging bluffs that people could
live under. After 2 years of exploring rock shelters he went back to
the museum with several thousand artifacts, studied them for years,
then wrote a book. That testing proved these artifacts dated back to
paleo Indians that inhabited the Ozarks as early as 7000 years ago.
Paleo cultures are decedents of the people that crossed from Eurasia
during the last Ice Age some 10,000 to 12,000 years ago. They are
considered the first people to have lived in Missouri.
The archaeologist's name was Mark R. Harrington. The book he wrote was
called "The Ozark Bluff-Dwellers." That name stuck, and that's why this
is called Bluff Dwellers Cavern. Many of the artifacts discovered are
on display at the cave entrance.
Public tours began in 1927 and after over 80 years the cave is still
owned & operated by the Browning family. |
