The cave, the foundation of the old store, and a water tower
structure for Cumberland Gap, TN, or at least one that provided
water and power for the previous owners of King Solomon's Cave /
Soldier's Cave / Cudjo's Cave - Lincoln Memorial University. Yes,
an active stream runs inside the cave, and was harnessed for
drinking water and hydroelectric power. I assume the old lighting
in the cave was powered by that structure. The spring inside
still provides water for LMU. According to Mr. Vaughn, Johnny
Greene of Harrowgate, TN was the last leaser / proprietor of the
shop and Cave before the National Park takeover. According to
Bill Porter, LMU owned much of the lands that became Cumberland
Gap National Park (virtually all the park land in Tennessee and a
sizeable chunk around the Gap area in Virginia, and donated it
for the Park. LMU retained the rights to the Cave and the water
for a certain length of time. They voluntarily gave up the Cave
when the time expired and the National Park Service agreed to let
them continue to use the water. I don't know if the college or
the Park Service is bottling the spring water for sale. (Image 25
of 33)
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