Organ Cave is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

Greenbrier County Greenbrier County () is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 32,977. Its county seat is Lewisburg. The county was formed in 1778 from Botetourt and Montgomery counties in Virginia. History P ...

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

, United States. Organ Cave is located along U.S. Route 219 and

West Virginia Route 63 West Virginia Route 63 is an east–west state highway located within Greenbrier County, West Virginia. The western terminus of the route is at West Virginia Route 12 in Alderson. The eastern terminus is at U.S. Route 60 in Caldwell. From A ...

at the

Organ Cave Organ Cave is a large and historic cave in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, USA. The surrounding community takes its name from the cave. In 1973, the Organ Cave System—also known as the Organ–Hedricks Cave System—was registered as a N ...

, southeast of Ronceverte. As might seem obvious from the name of the town, the principal attraction here is Organ Cave, the ninth longest mapped cave in the United States. Organ Cave was mined for saltpeter, the principal ingredient of gunpowder, during the Revolutionary War, the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

, and the Civil War. Confederate General Robert E. Lee and his troops held a church service in the main entrance room of the cave during the war. Remains of the Civil War mining are in an excellent state of preservation and are seen on the commercial tour. The early saltpeter miners discovered the bones of a large, unknown animal. The owner of the cave sent some of the bones (a forearm and a hand with giant claws) to

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

. Thomas Jefferson described them as "Megalonyx" (Latin for Giant Lion). This was the first reported find of a giant ground sloth in the United States. Jefferson soon determined that the animal was actually an extinct sloth, not a lion, but the Genus name "Megalonyx" is retained to this day. This particular genus is now known as Megalonyx jeffersoni.

References

*Humphreys, Blanche (1928)
''History of Organ Cave Community (Greenbrier County, West Virginia)''
Agricultural Extension Division. Unincorporated communities in Greenbrier County, West Virginia Unincorporated communities in West Virginia {{GreenbrierCountyWV-geo-stub