Russell Cave National Monument:
The Southeast's Most Complete Record Through Time
by Melanie B. Bradford, Section #3 of 7

The "Discovery" of Russell Cave and
Subsequent Excavations

Local Knowledge, the "Discovery" by Paul H. Brown
and Studies by the Smithsonian and National Geographic:

From the early days of John Woods' ownership of the cove, people knew about the existence of Russell Cave. Existing photographs prove the cave was a popular spot for picnics and dances by the 1900's.

The people of the area knew Native Americans had lived in the cave. Numerous arrowheads, spear points, pieces of pottery and other artifacts were scattered about the surface area of the cave. Many of these artifacts are now in unknown private collections. However, despite its popularity among people in the area, the cave was not publicly "discovered" until 1951.

In 1951, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) surveyed the area to erect power lines. One of the engineers on the project was Paul H. Brown, a member of the Chattanooga Chapter of the Tennessee Archaeological Society. Area residents told Brown that Doran's Cove was proliferated with arrowheads and spear points. Local farmers showed Brown plowed fields that turned up quantities of these artifacts. Brown also learned about a cave approximately three miles from the mouth of the cove.

Excited by this news, Brown invited fellow Tennessee Archaeological Society member, Charles K. Peacock, to visit this promising site. In July 1951, the two men came to Russell Cave site to view the massive double-chambered cave. The lower section of the cave opened to an underground spring that carried water into the cave system. Brown and Peacock also observed that Dry Creek, a creek that flowed with the onslaught of heavy rains, also flowed into the lower cave. Approximately twenty-three feet above this lower chamber, Brown and Peacock found the entrance to the upper chamber. The mouth of the chamber was more than 100 feet wide, but only about 150 deep because enormous slabs of rock from roof collapses had filled the cave. In the upper chamber, Brown and Peacock discovered projectile points, flint chips, pottery pieces and freshwater shells indicating that the cave had been occupied by early Native Americans. Brown and Peacock did not conduct any excavations during this visit.

By November 1951 they had secured a lease from the landowner, Oscar Ridley, to excavate the site. Brown and Peacock at this time were joined by LeBaron Pahmeyer and J.B. Graham, both members of the Tennessee Archaeological Society. Brown, Peacock, Pahmeyer, Graham and other members of the archaeological society conducted excavations from 1953 to 1955. The excavation area was essentially confined to the back north wall and did not exceed seven feet in depth. The concentrated amount and the variety of artifacts convinced the men the site potentially contained very significant discoveries. Armed with this information the group approached the Smithsonian Institute about the excavations.

Based upon Brown's reports and their own inspection of the site, the Smithsonian applied to the National Geographic Society for financial funding of the excavations. In 1956, funding was granted and Carl F. Miller of the Smithsonian Institute, began the first of three summer excavation seasons between 1956 and 1958. Miller's excavations, which penetrated 32 feet to the original cave floor, established that the cave had been used by Early Archaic people. His study also established that the cave had been used consistently. Popular accounts of Miller's first two archaeological seasons were published in National Geographic in October 1956 and March 1958. During these excavations, the National Geographic Society purchased the site and offered it to the public as a national monument. On May 11, 1961, President John F. Kennedy established the Russell Cave National Monument.

Russell Cave and the National Park Service Excavations:

Once Russell Cave became a National Monument, it came under the authority of the National Park Service (NPS). Soon after its induction into the NPS, archaeologists and other personnel from the NPS began looking at ways to share the site with the public. Plans were made to create an exhibit displaying the stratified (segmented) deposits of earth within the cave. The public would be able to enter the cave on a walkway and go into the exhibit area in the center portion of the cave. The exhibit would consist of an excavation pit, focusing on the visible earthen layers that had periodically served as the cave floor surface. In addition, a small slide program would explain the significance and history of the cave to visitors.

To proceed with these plans, the NPS had to conduct further excavations to prepare the intended site for exhibit. In addition, the necessary excavations would further the information collected by Brown and Miller. As a result, the NPS carried out their own excavations from July through November 1962. The NPS excavations were conducted primarily in the central front area of the cave. However, they did include a portion of the back area examined during Miller's excavations. The NPS excavations revealed details about the stratigraphic formation of the cave and, especially, produced information concerning the use of the cave by early peoples. Much of the available information concerning Russell Cave came from the 1962 NPS excavations. This remainder of this article will focus on the NPS excavations, but will also present findings from the previous excavations.

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