SubTropolis is a , artificial

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

in the bluffs above the Missouri River in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, that is claimed to be the world's largest underground storage facility. Developed by late

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

owner

Lamar Hunt Lamar Hunt (August 2, 1932 – December 13, 2006) was an American businessman most notable for his promotion of American football, soccer, and tennis in the United States. He was the principal founder of the American Football League (AFL) and ...

via Hunt Midwest Real Estate Development, Inc., it has trademarked the phrase ''World's Largest Underground Business Complex''. Dug into the Bethany Falls limestone mine, SubTropolis is, in places, beneath the surface. It has a grid of high, wide tunnels separated by square limestone pillars created by the

room and pillar Room and pillar or pillar and stall is a variant of breast stoping. It is a mining system in which the mined material is extracted across a horizontal plane, creating horizontal arrays of rooms and pillars. To do this, "rooms" of ore are dug out w ...

method of

hard rock mining Underground hard-rock mining refers to various underground mining techniques used to excavate "hard" minerals, usually those containing metals, such as ore containing gold, silver, iron, copper, zinc, nickel, tin, and lead. It also involves the ...

. The complex contains almost of illuminated, paved roads and several miles of

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

track. Currently, more than is occupied and are available for future expansion. The mine naturally maintains temperatures between year-round. The

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...

and the

United States Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it be ...

lease spaces within SubTropolis, the

for its collectible stamp operations and the

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon pro ...

for their Region-7 Training and Logistics Center. The

National Archives and Records Administration The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...

also leases space for a Federal Records Center. {{Cite web , url=https://www.archives.gov/frc/kansas-city , title=Archives.gov 2018-02-26 Kansas City, MO Federal Records Center , access-date=2020-01-11 , archive-date=2020-01-11 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200111040135/https://www.archives.gov/frc/kansas-city , url-status=live On the north edge of the complex Hunt developed the

Worlds of Fun Worlds of Fun is an entertainment complex with more than 235 acres located in Kansas City, Missouri. It is the largest amusement park and water park in the Midwest. Founded by American businessmen Lamar Hunt and Jack Steadman, the park opened in ...

and Oceans of Fun amusement park complex. Hunt's extensive business dealings in Clay County contributed to the Chiefs having their

NFL Training Camp In the National Football League, training camp refers to the time before the season commences. During this time, teams sometimes congregate at an outside location, usually a university, to conduct training camp for at least the first few weeks. ...

William Jewell College William Jewell College is a private liberal arts college in Liberty, Missouri. It was founded in 1849 by members of the Missouri Baptist Convention and endowed with $10,000 by William Jewell. It was associated with the Missouri Baptist Conventi ...

Liberty, Missouri Liberty is a city in and the county seat of Clay County, Missouri, United States and is a suburb of Kansas City, located in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2020 United States Census the population was 30,167. Liberty is home to Willi ...

until 1991. Other facilities like SubTropolis exist although not on the same scale, such as the abandoned mine in

Butler, Pennsylvania Butler is a city and the county seat of Butler County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located north of Pittsburgh and is part of the Greater Pittsburgh region. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 13,502. History Butler was na ...

used by Corbis and the

US Federal Government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fed ...

for secure storage. As the room and pillar mining method is used to extract limestone throughout the Midwest, many companies are looking at ways to utilize the hundreds of millions of square feet created in this manner for everything from

mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans. The standard for the name "mushroom" is t ...

farming to

crude oil Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...

stockpiling.

References

Kansas City Star profileNBC Today Show segmentCNN Great Big Story segment

External links

SubTropolis home site (Hunt Midwest)

Hunt Midwest home site (Hunt Midwest)

SubTropolis Technology Center home site (Hunt Midwest)

Hunt Midwest - YouTube
Buildings and structures in Kansas City, Missouri Landforms of Clay County, Missouri Economy of Kansas City, Missouri Subterranea of the United States Warehouses in the United States

Buildings and structures in Missouri {{Commons category, Buildings in Missouri Missouri Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the nor ...

Limestone industry

See also

References

External links