History of the Cave

Crystal Cave was discovered in 1881, when a curious boy stumbled upon a “leaf filled sink.”  The young boys name was William and he found the sink when he was walking alone in his woods.  William took a stick and stuck it into the hole and it fell beneath the ground out of his reach.  The next day William and his little brother George took a daring trip into the cave by lowering themselves into the cavern to what is now the main room on the second floor.  The boys found themselves in a room covered by clay and debris and discovered only a fraction of what Crystal Cave is today.  Crystal Cave was first developed by Henry A. Friede, an amateur Geologist, in 1941.  Friede was interested in caves and was hoping to make the next big discovery after what is now the Cave of the Mounds was discovered.  Friede and his team worked on the first and second levels and used drag line to remove the silt and debris from the cave.  While this was happening, Alvin Peterson was working on an entrance for the developing cave.  Development was very rapid and Friede was eager to open his cave Memorial Day Weekend of 1942 but massive flooding delayed the opening to June 7, 1942.  The cave became successful and the Friede’s expanded to eventually turning a newly discovered room into a restaurant. The cave was bought and sold many times after the Friede’s put it on the market but eventually Blaze and Jean Cunningham took over ownership in 1986.  Blaze and Jean, geologists by training, are the current owners of Crystal Cave.  The Cunningham’s made massive discoveries after they took over the cave, tripling the cave’s length.  The Cave is now used as an educational facility and is toured seasonally by many.