Cave Post Offices
Shenandoah Caverns, in Quicksburg County off Interstate 81, was discovered in 1884 during the construction of the Southern Railroad and was commercialized in 1922. The post office is named after the caverns and is still in operation (Figure 83).
Endless Caverns, in Orange County off Interstate Highway 81 at New Market, was discovered in 1879. The post office was named after the caverns and remained in operation until 1943 (Figures 84 and 85).
Natural Bridge in Rockbridge County is a geological formation carved out by Cedar Creek. The creek has carved out a gorge in the limestone terrain forming an arch 215 feet high with a span of 90 feet. Natural Bridge has been designated a Virginia Historical Landmark and a National Historical Landmark (Figures 86 and 87).
SA 19
Figure 86. Natural Bridge, Virginia, 4-bar killer.
HTUML
Virginia
near Reed Island Creek, with the post office Wi miles southeast from the creek (Figures 19 and 20).
UNITED STATES POSTAGE
Z CENTS 2
Figure 88. Natural Tunnel, Virginia, 4-bar killer.
REFERENCES
Axelson, Edith F. Virginia Postmasters and Post Offices, 1789-1832. Athens, Georgia:
Iberian Publishing Co. 1991.
James, Charles L. Alleghany County, Virginia: Post Offices and Postmasters. Lake Grove, Oregon: The Depot. 1993.
Hagemann, James. The Heritage of Virginia: The Story of Place Names in the OldDominion.
Norfolk, Virginia: Donning Company, 1986.
Helbock, Richard W. United States Post Offices Lake Oswego, Oregon: La Posta Publications. 2004. Volume VI - The Mid-Atlantic States.
Wine, J. Floyd. Frederick County, Virginia, Post Offices: Past and Present. Winchester, Virginia: J.F. Wine. 1987.
Washington Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Grotto 7/13/1910-11/30/1918 King
Grotto 7/9/1923-3/21/1980 King
Grotto is 4 miles northwest of Skykomish on the South Fork of the Skykomish River in northeast King County. The name was derived from the deep ravines and gorges of Grotto Mountain a mile to the northeast, which resembled caves (Figure 89).
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Figure 89. Grotto, Washington, manuscript cancel.
REFERENCES
Helbock, Richard W. United States Post Offices Lake Oswego, Oregon: La Posta Publications. 1998. Volume I -The West States (formerly Western Post Offices).
West Virginia Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave 1886-1954 Pendleton
Grotto Dell 1860-1866,1867-1875 Roane
Organ Cave 1887-1950 Greenbrier
Rock Cave (26234) 1859-Open Upshur
Rock Cave,
Arlington Rural Station
1959 Upshur
Rock Cave is both a small mountain village and post office on Route 20. Between 1848 and 1859 it was known as Rudes Mill, then in September, 1859, the name was changed to Rock Cave. There was a proposal to name it Rock Lava for what appeared to be lava stones found on Straight Fork Run, on the assumption there had once been a volcano in the area. However, the name finally settled on was for a nearby rock shelter cave (Figures 90and91).
Figure 90. Rock Cave, West Virginia, Arlington Rural Station 4-bar killer (courtesy o/'Speleophilately International)
and Rock Cave, West Virginia, 4-bar killer.
Organ Cave, off Route 219 in Greenbrier County south of Ronceverte, is named after a stalactite formation resembling an organ. It is the 37th largest cave in the world, was once mined for saltpeter, and also served as General Robert E. Lee's underground powder works. The post office of the same name operated between 1887 and 1950 (Figure 92).
Cave is an unincorporated community located in Pendleton County, named after a cave
Cave Post Offices
in the vicinity, was located on U.S. Highway 220 along the South Branch Potomac River.
The post office was established in 1886 and closed in 1954 (Figure 93).
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Figure 91. Rock Cave, West Virginia, CDS and target killer.
Figure 92. Organ Cave, West Virginia, 4-bar killer and CDS with target killer.
Figure 93. Cave, West Virginia, 4-bar killer.
West Virginia
There are no known postmarks for Grotto Dell Post Office.
REFERENCES
Helbock, Richard W. United States Post Offices Lake Oswego, Oregon: La Posta Publications. 2004. Volume VI -The Mid-Atlantic States.
No Cave Post Offices in the Following States
There have been no cave or cave-related post offices in the states of Delaware, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Utah, or Vermont.
The following pages contain:
Appendix One - Cave post offices: a combined list of the previously discussed states and their corresponding cave post offices.
Appendix Two - Some cave-related post offices: a list of 32 states with selected cave- related post office names, for example, sinking spring, limestone, and lost creek.
Appendix One
Alabama Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave Spring (s) 9/11/1856-7/25/1866 Fayette Cave Spring (s) 6/12/1871-10/27/1887 Fayette Cave Spring (s) 4/24/1888-7725/1894 Fayette
Arkansas Cave Post Ofices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave City (72521) 1892-Open Sharp
Cave Creek 1855-1895 Newton
Cavecreek 1895-1973 Newton
Cave Hill 1923 Warren
Cave Springs (72718) 1908 - Open Benton
Arizona Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave Creek (Cavecreek) (85331) 1890-Open Maricopa Grand Canyon Caverns -
Rural Branch of Peach Springs
1973-3/29/1974 Mohave
Cave Post Offices
California Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave Dale 1913-1925 Sonoma
Mammoth Cave 10/25/1883-11/30/1887 Calaveras
Colorado Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Grotto 3/7/1881-3/21/1882 Jefferson
Georgia Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Blowing Cave 1855-1895 Decatur
Cave 1890-1940 Bartow
Cave Hill 1900 Washington
Cave Springs) (30124) 1841-Open Floyd
Hawaii Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Anahola 1856-1869 Kauai
Pukalani 1950-1961 Maui
Waialua (96791) 1856-Open Oahu
Appendix One
Illinois Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave 9/27/1847-3/26/1879 Franklin
Rock and Cave 3/13/1832-10/24/1849 Hardin
Cave-in-Rock (62919) 10/24/1849-Open Hardin
Cave Valley 2/7/1893-7/20/1894 Jackson
Indiana Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Alum Cave 1/22/1884-1905 Clay/Sullivan
Cave Spring 6/19/1854-8/15/1862 Decatur
Kings Cave 8/28/1870-7/10/1873 Harrison
Spring Cave 7718/1866-9/12/1866 Owen
Kansas Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave 1901-1914 Greene
Cave Spring 1874-1878 Butler
Cave Springs 1882-1903 Elk
Cave Post Offices
Kentucky Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave City (42147) 1860-Open Barren
Cave Hill 1879-1926 Warren
Cave Point 1892-1893 Franklin
Cave Ridge 1916-1950 Metcalfe
Cave Spring 1848-1851 Scott
Cave Spring(s) 1880-1946 Logan
Cave Springs Station 1869-1880 Logan
Caverna 5/4/1869 - 12/22/1879 Hart
Caverock 1908-1910 Knox
Cave Run 1902-1913 Bath
Caves 1857-1905 Carter
Horse Cave(42749) 3/1/1860-Open Hart
Mammoth Cave (42259) 1842-Open Edmonson
Peter Cave 1878-1892 Martin
Proctors Cave 1894-1906 Edmonson
Russell Cave 1879-1900 Fayette
Twin Cave 1900-1901 Meade
Wind Cave 1902-1996 Jackson
Maryland Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cavetown (21720) 1815-Open Washington
The Caves 1878-1879 Baltimore
Mississippi Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cuevas 1/19/1893-4/30/1956 Harrison
Cuevas Rural Station of Pass Christian
5/1/1956-4/13/1973 Harrison
Appendix One
Missouri Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave Pump 1854-1861,1867-1890 Camden
Caverna 1876-1906 McDonald
Cave Spring (1) 1834-Unknown Crawford
Cave Spring (2) Unknown- 1844 Pulaski
Cave Spring (3) 1844-1867 Wright
Cave Spring (4) 1871 - 1907 Greene
Cave Station St Louis, Mo. 1900-1905 Saint Louis
Marvel Cave Park 1980-1987 Stone
Meramec Caverns Rural Station of Stanton, Mo.
1956 Franklin
Montana Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cavern 3/29/1909-1/31/1936 Jefferson
Cavetown 4/2/1878-11/9/1880 Broadwater
Nevada Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave Creek (Ranch PO) 11/5/1887-4/30/1929 Elko Cave Valley (Ranch PO) 6/24/1926-2/15/1933 Lincoln
New Mexico Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
La Cueva 1868-1961 Mora
Cave Post Offices
New York Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Grotto 1882-1902 Tompkins
Howe (s)(s) Cave (12092) 1867 - Open Schoharie
Natural Bridge (13665) 1829-Open Jefferson
North Carolina Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Bat Cave (28710) 12/22/1879-Open Henderson
Grotto 3/3/1893-3/31/1905 Moore
Ohio Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Ash Cave 6/26/1857-7/19/1866 Hocking
Oregon Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave Junction (97523) 1936-Open Josephine
Cave Junction Oregon Caves Rural Station
4/1/1956-9/1/1977 Josephine Cave Junction Takilma
Rural Station
9/2/1958-9/15/1967 Josephine Cave Junction Holland
Rural Station
9/1/1958-12/1/1960 Josephine Cave Junction Kerby Rural
Station
9/1/1958 - Open in summer Josephine
Oregon Caves 1924-1956 Josephine
Appendix One
Pennsylvania Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Hunter's Cave 2/1/1850-11/1/1872 Greene
Hunter's Cave 7/13/1886-12/1/1894 Greene
Hunters Cave 12/1/1894-3/15/1904 Greene
Penn Cave 9/5/1892-12/1/1895 Centre
Penncave 12/1/1895-6/31/1903 Centre
South Carolina Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave 1899-1916 Allendale
South Dakota Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave Hills 7/15/1889-6/29/1894 Harding
Wind Cave 10/18/1892-12/8/1893 Fall River
Wind Cave 1/3/1893-11/30/1908 Custer
Windcave 12/1/1895-10/15/1908 Custer
Cave Post Offices
Tennessee Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Bone Cave 3/9/1866-1978 Van Buren
Cave 12/21/1848-11/30/1901 White
Cave 1/1/1902-9/30/1925 White
Cave Bluff 2/1/1899-10/15/1900 Unicoi
Cave Creek 9/2/1873-12/1/1875 Roane
Cave Creek 6/27/1879-11/14/1903 Roane
Cave Hill 10/8/1831 - 5/16/1845 Greene
Cave Mills 6/12/1827-10/28/1828 Warren
Cave Mills 2/19/1877-10/20/1896 Dickson
Cave Point 5/23/1898 - 3/31/1905 Macon
Cave Spring 5/7/1832-1/19/1844 Maury
Cave Spring 8/10/1846-2/8/1849 Maury
Cave Spring 7/6/1855-1/25/1884 Carter
Texas Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Bee Cave (s) 4/19/1870-3/15/1915 Travis
Grotto 12/11/1901-1/14/1905 Hopkins
Natural Bridge Caverns (78266) 1982-1999 Comal San Antonio Natural Bridge
Caverns Rural Station
Unknown Comal
Appendix One
Virginia Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave Spring (s) 1847-1908 Roanoke
Cave Spring Branch of Roanoke
Unknown Roanoke
Cavesville 1816-1837 Orange
Endless Caverns 1929-1943 Rockingham
Natural Bridge (24579) 1800-Open Rockbridge
Natural Bridge Station #1 1911-1961 Rockbridge
Natural Bridge Station #2 1961 - Open Rockbridge
Natural Tunnel 1860-1955 Scott
Saltpetre (er) Cave 1858-1923 Botetourt
Shenandoah Caverns (22847) 1926-Open Shenandoah
Shenandoah Caverns Rural Station of Quicksburg
1949 Shenandoah
Starcave 1902-1913 Wythe
(The) Grottoes 1888-1890 Rockingham
Weyer's Cave 1874-1894 Augusta
Weyers Cave (24486) 1894-Open Augusta
Weyer's Cave B & O Railroad (MP# 273-5-12)
1875-1876 Augusta
Washington Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Grotto 7/13/1910-11/30/1918 King
Grotto 7/9/1923-3/21/1980 King
Cave Post Offices
West Virginia Cave Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Cave 1886-1954 Pendleton
Grotto Dell 1860-1866,1867-1875 Roane
Organ Cave 1887-1950 Greenbrier
Rock Cave (26234) 1859-Open Upshur
Rock Cave,
Arlington Rural Station
1959 Upshur
Appendix Two
Some Cave Related Post Offices
Alabama Cave Related Post Offices
City/Town/ZIP Dates of Operation County
Dolomite 1888-1901 Jefferson
Limestone 1886-1901 Madison
Lost Creek 1861 Randolph
Natural Bridge (35577) 7/17/1890-Open Winston