The Wayback Machine

[Ozark Outlaw]

1951 is as good of a years as any!

The Liberty Bell looks dazzling in that picture. This is also a good illustration of the wooden handrails. Rube, where do you find this stuff? I have never seen such an endless collection!

[pintrader]

It sure does look great!  And if I remember my cave tour information correctly, it grows 1 inch per 100 years.  You know it does look a little shorter in that picture.  I mean it is a half inch taller today  .

[Junior]

Intersting to see how the tour paths have changed over the years. that old path going down has not been used in decades.

[Copper]

In fact the stairs around the Liberty Bell don’t even exist any longer.  This also predates the cable train, so people had to retrace their steps to get out.  Also, the roof on the old wooden tower in the 50s was a gable roof and the tower looked a lot like a fire tower.  Jack Herschend said towards the end of the tower’s life it would move in circles as the tour would descend it, which would have created some interesting tours.  Nice photos!

[KBCraig]

It sure does look great!  And if I remember my cave tour information correctly, it grows 1 inch per 100 years.  You know it does look a little shorter in that picture.  I mean it is a half inch taller today  .

I think that's one cubic inch per century. Volume, not height.

[rubedugans]

I believed that it was 1 cubic inch per 100 year as well...the equivalent to spreading one sugar cube over the whole bell evenly every 100 years. I also think it is pretty cool that it supposedly can hold 4-5 adults since it is hollow...

[rubedugans]

Alright there are a few issues, so we are stuck in 1951 still...soo here is a wider view of the liberty bell

[Ozark Outlaw]

Perhaps I am being a bit ignorant on camera technology in 1951, but the pictures of the Liberty Bell sure are crisp, and nicely lit up for such a dark cave nearly 60 years ago.  I suppose those cameras had a really bright flash on them. 

Thanks for another historic picture of our beloved cave!

[marolinesdad]

Love the pics...   Hey Copper, now that you are in charge of the cave can you get the us into any places that are not on the regular tour. 

[Copper]

I can get pictures!!! I have been back to the lakes several times and I have seen the waterfall room flood to the ceiling on several occasions. If you could go off trail where would you want to go?

[rubedugans]

Anywhere not on a tour! I would want to see behind the tower, I think thy are the "dungeons", and being an adventurer, I would want to journey to see the lakes, as well as the flooded waterfall room.

[rubedugans]

Shoot, The machine has started to go backwards...Now I am stuck in 1939. This is a souvenir photograph with the date "1939 M & G Lynch" in the dark area. This is also the same image that appeared in the post card from the same date showing the "Arrowhead" entrance to the Egyptian Room named as such from the "sandal" shape on the ceiling, as well as the Sphinx nose at the entrance (currently The Shoe Room)

[okiebluegrass]

Rube,

I'am newbie, but I've been hovering on here for the past couple weeks. Awesome pictures. Keep'em coming. Found some old postcards on ebay looking today. I'm thinking about starting a collection. My mom has a ton of the newpaper print bags over for washing machine. Mom grew up it Pittsburg,KS and has been going to SDC since before it was SDC.

[Ozark Outlaw]

Along with collecting the older, and historic stuff okie, you could also start collecting current stuff too. Just think, in thirty, forty, or fifty years down the road when everyone is talking about the classic stuff from 2010! 

[Copper]

The arrow head entry was also called the “genie.”  The guides back in the day would say, “If you can spot it on a tour without any help it will bring you good luck.”  I love the Genevieve and Miriam stories of the cave.