Limestone, Mushrooms, and Einstein EarthCache

This EarthCache is located outside Lawton, near Olive Hill, Ky. in Carter County. There is room to pull off the road but please do not go beyond the fence. The mine itself would likely be dangerous and is definitely, of course dark inside.

Limestone, Mushrooms, and Einstein

Limestone

This site was a mining operation, removing untold tons of limestone resulting in the upper portion of the hill being for the most part hollowed out. This was a major operation with passageways large enough to drive dump trucks in, and side passages branching off to the left and to the right. The mine contains approximately 2.6 million square feet of floor space hidden under the hill top. There are large columns of limestone remaining to support the ceiling(shown in the photo below) much as in the shaft mines where coal is taken from the ground.

Man-made Karst

On the inside of the mine the main tunnel branches off both to the left and to the right. At some of these junctions the ceiling of the mine has given way to the forces of gravity. This is the same way underground caves results in the forming of sinkholes that dot the Kentucky countryside. The difference being is that this tunnel (man-made cave) was not formed by water and that the completion of the sinkhole has not yet occurred. That is to say that it has not yet broken through to the surface, but given time it almost certainly will. In Karst regions the slightly acidic water dissolves the limestone as it runs through underground cracks and crevices eventually forming tunnels and caves with rivers or streams running through them. As the cave broadens and deepens over time a circular section of the ceiling collapses forming a sinkhole. It may take several collapses before the surface “sinks”

The photo above shows the same circular pattern of collapse, notice the large pile of debris from this event. The picture below shows the ceiling with multiple collapses that have occurred over time. Each collapse being smaller than the one before.

Mushrooms

After the limestone mine was shut down, likely after WWII, the abandoned site was eventually used for the commercial production of mushrooms. The dark man-made caverns were perfect for this endeavor, being a constant 55-56 degree temperature year-round, with easy access to a nearby road. In researching this EC, a family member reported that she had worked in the mushroom factory while she was still in high school. The business closed down in the 1970’s.

Einstein

When Albert Einstein wrote the Special Theory of Relativity, part of which is the famous equation; energy equals mass times the speed of light squared (E=mc2) helped produce the atomic bomb. The radiation and the fallout from which is deadly but cannot penetrate deep underground, for instance a cave or an underground mine.

During the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union there was fear of a nuclear attack and there was talk of turning the abandoned mine into a bomb shelter, complete with steel blast-proof doors. The thick limestone layers combined with the large cavity would provide both protection and space for storing food and other essentials as well as people. This idea was abandoned however likely due to costs and the reduction of arms by the two super-powers. Recently the mine has been looked at as a possible storage site for data in the form of computers and magnetic tapes, as well as other information storage devices. Work has once again been conducted at the site, as it appears the mine openings have been cleared and buildings are being erected near the entrance.

There was at our last visit, a fence blocking the entrance to the property. Please do not enter the premises or especially go into the mine. The above pictures (except the one of Dr. Einstein and the one of the entrance) were taken when it was not blocked. There are many ghost stories associated with this mine and was the location where a man hid the bodies of his father and step-mother after killing them.

To get credit for this Earthcache email the answers to the questions below and post a picture of you and your GPSr with entrance to the mine in the background. Failure to answer the questions or logs with no pictures will result in the log being deleted. If it is not possible to get a picture because of camera problems, for instance the batteries died or you dropped your camera in the road and it was run over, email us first and we will work something out.

Questions:

1. How is this developing into a man made version of Karst topography?

2. What is the estimated height of the mine opening closest to the road?

3. Why would this site have been considered for a nuclear shelter in the event of a war?

Credits and Ammosuperman EarthCaches

Special thanks to Fred and Carolyn Collins for providing information on the mine site and for just being good folks.

This EarthCache was created by a team of two Platinum EarthCache Masters, Ammosuperman EarthCaches are a collaborative effort. We have used resources such as the Internet and magazine articles as well as personal experience in visiting the sites, as research tools in its construction. Our goal is to learn more about our planet and to pass along what we have learned to others having similar interests. We hope you enjoy the experience.