CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Efforts are underway at Dunbar Cave State Park to preserve and restore pieces of the park's long and varied history.
Park employees are working on multiple restoration projects. They just completed restoration work on a 1930s-era ticket booth. They're now focusing on the historic arches, supporting the park's bandstand. The work is part of a broader effort to preserve the site's past while ensuring future generations can continue to enjoy it.
According to Park Manager Preston Williams, Dunbar Cave's history stretches back at least 10,000 years. The cave served as a shelter for Indigenous Peoples and later became home to a community of formerly enslaved people following the Civil War. "There’s so much history here to preserve and protect," Williams said.
Beginning in 1875, the area evolved into a resort destination featuring several hotels, a swimming pool and an entertainment venue near the mouth of the cave. "They wanted to commercialize it," Williams said.
Especially in the 1920s through 50s, visitors gathered at the cave for concerts, dances and other events."More or less, it was a party scene," Williams said. "You're having concerts, you're having dances. People gathering and having a good time."
The venue hosted a variety of musical acts over the years, ranging from big band jazz to country music and square dances. Williams said the entertainment tradition continued after country music legend Roy Acuff purchased the property in 1948. "This place kind of being the first Opryland before there was Opryland," Williams said.
One attraction was the naturally cool temperature at the cave entrance, which remains around 56 degrees year-round. "If you're going to be out here dancing on a hot summer day, what better place to do it than here at the cave entrance?" Williams said.
Today, state park officials are focused on preserving reminders of those earlier eras.
One project involves restoring the park's historic ticket booth, which once greeted visitors as they arrived for events and attractions.
A larger undertaking is taking place at the bandstand, where maintenance crews are carefully scraping away decades of white paint from the historic concrete arches.
Maintenance Manager Kenneth Klein said historical records indicate the arches were originally bare concrete. "We've got historical evidence the arches were bare concrete, so what we're doing at this point is removing this latex-based paint, which holds moisture, and returning them back to the most historical state we have on record," Klein said.
Once the paint removal process is complete, workers plan to repair damaged areas and apply materials designed to better protect the concrete from moisture. "So it actually becomes a part of the concrete wall and not a layer that can flake any time in the future," Klein said.
Park officials hope the restoration work will help preserve an important piece of local history while creating a welcoming space for future visitors. "Hopefully they enjoy it and hopefully our future generations will continue to enjoy that," Klein said.
Scraping work on the bandstand arches is expected to continue for several more months before repainting and other restoration efforts begin.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at Chris.Davis@NewsChannel5.com.
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