Cave City

History

The site upon which Cave City stands was acquired in October 1853 by the Knob City Land Company, composed of Messrs. Graham, Quigly, Adams, and Hopson, all of whom were from Louisville and envisioned the place as a resort town due to its proximity to Mammoth Cave. The town was incorporated in 1866. Originally, of what would become the town site was acquired by James Perry in a 1798 land grant. In 1811, Henry Roundtree (an assignee of James Perry) sold the land to John Owens for $190. Owens added to the tract. After his death, his executor sold his 342½ acres to Thomas T. Duke for $1,732.00. Duke, in turn, sold the entire tract to the Knob City Land Company. Duke received $6,850.00 for the land, or $20 per acre—a record amount for a land sale in Barren County at that time. The Knob City Land Company surveyed and laid out the town, the main streets being wide, and began to sell lots about the same time as the Louisville & Nashville Railroad came through Barren County. The first train arrived at Cave City in 1859. The town took its name from a cave within the town limits, not nearby Mammoth Cave. A small creek ran through the cave which the L&N Railroad used as a source of water. The creek was called "Sink Hole Spring" and was the only water supply for the town at the time. The Cave City post office was established in January 1860 and Beverly Daniel Curd appointed the first post-master. He moved the post office established in 1850 at Woodland (about a mile north) to Cave City. In January 1870, a tornado known as the Cave City storm killed over 20 people in Barren County and destroyed the hamlet of Prewitt's Knob.

Geography

Cave City is located in the northwestern portion of Barren County at (37.137130, -85.956958). U.S. Route 31W (Dixie Highway) passes through the center of the city, and Interstate 65 passes to the west of downtown, with access from Exit 53 (Kentucky Route 70/Mammoth Cave Road). Elizabethtown is to the north, and Louisville is north via I-65. Bowling Green is to the southwest, and Nashville, Tennessee, is to the southwest via I-65. The center of Mammoth Cave National Park is to the west via Kentucky Route 70. Glasgow, the Barren County seat, is located to the southeast via Kentucky Route 90. According to the United States Census Bureau, Cave City has a total area of , of which , or 0.46%, is water.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  2,883
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  2,592
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,495
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  2,373
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,261
• Turkey Vulture

  Cathartes aura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,200
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  2,168
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  2,100

Largest nearby schools

• Highland Elementary School
  Elementary · Glasgow · 740 students · 16.8:1 ratio
• Glasgow High School
  High · Glasgow · 589 students · 14:1 ratio
• North Jackson Elementary
  Elementary · Glasgow · 542 students · 16.9:1 ratio
• Glasgow Middle School
  Middle · Glasgow · 539 students · 16.3:1 ratio
• Park City Elementary School
  Elementary · Park City · 382 students · 15.3:1 ratio
• Caverna Elementary School
  Elementary · Cave City · 310 students · 11.5:1 ratio
• Hiseville Elementary School
  Elementary · Glasgow · 308 students · 15.4:1 ratio
• Success Academy
  High · Glasgow · 73 students · 73:1 ratio