| Laurel Caverns | |
|---|---|
 Stairs, lit with electric lights, lead into the cavern. | |
| Location | Farmington, Pennsylvania |
| Length | 4,972 meters (16,312 ft)[1] |
| Discovery | 1760s (first recorded exploration)[2] |
| Geology | Karst cave Mississippian Loyalhanna limestone |
| Access | Adults: $15 USD Seniors (65+): $12 USD Children (12-18): $10 USD Children (6-11): $10 USD Children (0-5): free Upper Caving (9 and up): $20 USD Lower Caving (12 and up): $25 USD |
Laurel Caverns is the largest cave in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania by volume and area.[3] Located in the community of Farmington, it sits on the Chestnut Ridge near Uniontown,[4] roughly 50 miles (80 km) southeast of Pittsburgh.
Initially an unregulated wild cave that was known by locals and word of mouth as "Dulany's Cave" (alternate spelling: "Dulaney's Cave") during the early 1900s,[5] it was owned, during the 1930s, by Norman Cale and his brother, and then later by Cale[6] and his wife, Helen, who opened it to the general public as a show cave on July 1, 1964, and marketed it as "the caverns in the clouds".[7][8][9][10]
- ^ "Show Caves of the United States of America: Laurel Caverns".
- ^ "Welcome".
- ^ "Outdoor Writers Find Seven Springs of Great Interest." Berwick, Pennsylvania: Berwick Enterprise, May 25, 1968, p. 4 (subscription required).
- ^ "Laurel Caverns Restoring Old French Outpost Site." Uniontown, Pennsylvania: Evening Standard, July 19, 1968, p. 16 (subscription required).
- ^ "Pupils Aid in Fighting Fires." Uniontown, Pennsylvania: The Morning Herald, April 12, 1915, p. 7 (subscription required).
- ^ Storey, Buzz. "Just a Bunch of Old Cavemen—That's Us." Uniontown, Pennsylvania: Evening Standard, April 8, 1952, p. 13 (subscription required).
- ^ "Laurel Caverns, Newest Tourist Attraction Opens on July 1st." Somerset, Pennsylvania: The Daily American, June 27, 1964, p. 3 (subscription required).
- ^ Tepper, Eric. "Laurel Caverns Largest in Pa." Latrobe, Pennsylvania: The Latrobe Bulletin, June 19, 1965, p. 9 (subscription required).
- ^ "Laurel Caverns to Be Expanded." Boswell, Pennsylvania: Boswell News, November 5, 1964, p. 2 (subscription required).
- ^ "New Tower and Stockade at Caverns." Uniontown, Pennsylvania: Evening Standard, October 19, 1968, p. 6 (subscription required).