Ohio Caverns   Save
Ohio Guide Photographs
Description: Reverse reads: "District 6 Logan Co. West Liberty O. Ohio Caverns." This photograph shows stalactites and stalagmites in the Ohio Caverns, which is located at 2210 East State Route 245, just outside of West Liberty, Ohio, near the border of Logan and Champaign counties. In 1897, a farm boy investigating the disappearance of water into a sinkhole in a nearby field discovered this system of subterranean passageways. Digging down a few feet, he found an opening to a cave that had been formed by an underground river running through the soluble limestone bedrock, perhaps several thousand years earlier. Ground water dripping down from the cavern's ceiling continues to form stalactites, stalagmites, and mineral coatings on the cavern's walls, floor, and ceiling. A portion of Ohio Caverns near the discovery site was opened to the public in 1897, but that section closed in 1925 when a more extensive and geologically interesting part of the cave was discovered. Ohio Caverns is the largest known cave system in the state and is widely considered to be the most beautiful of all Ohio caves. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B10F04_036_001
Subjects: Caves--Ohio
Places: West Liberty (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio)