Establishment of Mammoth Cave National Park

Mammoth Cave National Park in central Kentucky protects the world's longest known cave system, which has been explored for hundreds of kilometres of passages and is still being mapped. The cave formed in thick limestone layers beneath the Green River valley and has been visited by people for thousands of years. In the early nineteenth century saltpeter was mined in it for gunpowder, and later it became a tourist attraction, with guides such as the enslaved man Stephen Bishop who explored and mapped much of it. A long campaign by local landowners and conservationists preceded the park's creation. It was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981 and is also a biosphere reserve.

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