Exploring Deep Inside Bristol Caverns in Bristol, Tennessee

You can take a drive on the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway, spend an hour hiking a trail at Grayson Highlands State Park, learn about local history at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum, but Bristol Caverns is the only place you can spend an hour viewing millions of years of geological history while enjoying beautiful rock formations and a silent underground creek. Located just a few miles from the heart of Bristol, Tennessee, taking a tour of Bristol Caverns is about the only way you could actually enjoy spending an hour underground.

Bristol Caverns is technically one of the oldest attractions in Tennessee because, after all, it has been forming for millions of years. First opening for business to tours in 1944, the caverns have changed hands a few times but always remained a locally-owned business. Today, you can visit the gift shop, take an hour-long tour of the caverns, enjoy a picnic near the cave entrance, or take a school field trip to learn about history and geology.

Near the highest point inside the caverns, this path loops around before going deep underground at Bristol Caverns, locally owned by brothers Gary, Tom, and Charles Barnett, in Bristol, TN on Monday, October 14, 2013. Copyright 2013 Jason Barnette Originally called Bishop's Cave, Bristol Caverns was opened as a tourism attraction in 1944. It has been locally-owned and operated by Gary, Tom, and Charles Barnett since 1981. Today, the caverns offer guided tours year-round of the enormous caverns.THE CAVES HAVE AN INTERESTING HISTORY that dates as far back as early settlement times (although it is very probable the history dates further back than this, but we just don’t know it). When early settlers came into the area, a group of Native Americans began raiding their farms and killing their livestock. The settlers banded together to form parties to hunt them down, tracking them to the entrance to what is now called Bristol Caverns: a small opening in ground that leads through the ceiling of the cave, just wide enough for people to move in and out. However, this is not the only entrance, which would serve to fool the early settlers. A second entrance along with the creek allowed the Native Americans to sneak out and attack the settlers’ homesteads while the settlers were trying to smoke them out of the cave.

A more interesting piece of history comes from an early name to the caverns, Bishop’s Cave. According to the local legend, Betty Bishop was a local woman of extraordinary beauty. She made many women jealous, but one in particular decided to hire a hitman to kill her. The hit succeeded, and the assassin dumped her body into the small entrance once used by Native Americans. When her body was discovered days later, the name “Bishop’s Cave” came to be associated with the caverns.

In 1863 Samuel Sesler rediscovered the caverns while digging for a cellar. After exploring the caverns he decided to turn them into a business venture: he began renting space for storage and growing produce. The year-round constant temperature in the upper 60’s and high humidity meant fruits and vegetables could be grown even during harsh winters.

In 1944, local Mr. Kitt opened the caves for the first time as a tourist attraction. Renaming them Bristol Caverns (because who wants to admit their business is named after a murdered woman), the tours explored the deepest parts of the cave. While building concrete staircases, smooth paths, and metal handrails for the tourists, special attention was paid to the appearance of the caves. As the concrete was mixed, dirt from the floor of the cave was mixed added to give the usually gray concrete a color that perfectly matched the cave walls. The same technique was applied to the handrails, creating a seamless blend of pathways, staircases, and natural beauty not found in many commercial caves.

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