Russell Cave National Monument

It met their first need – a refuge from the elements. The cave mouth faced east, away from the cold north wind but letting in the morning sun. It would be cool in the summer. Nearby were an excellent water source, abundant game, and a good supply of rock for shaping into weapon points. For the group of travelers making their way through the small valley the cave was tailor-made. American Indians had probably already lived in the area for at least 2,000 years, but it was not until roof falls raised part of the floor above the stream flowing through the cave that it had become permanently inhabitable.

For generations to follow, the cave continued to draw Indians. Over so long a time, it is difficult to generalize about how it was used. Since the first excavation here in 1953, it has been thought that the cave was used in winter by people who in warmer months moved to villages along the Tennessee River. But the evidence is not conclusive, and it seems likely that some groups used it as a permanent home, perhaps for years at a time. Others did use it as winter quarters, while for year-round nomads it was simply a convenient stopover. The archeological evidence does indicate that in the 1,000 years before European contact in the 16th century, the cave was used primarily as a hunting camp.

Most groups inhabiting the cave would probably have numbered no more than 15 to 30 – their size limited by the need for mobility and by how many people the land could sustain. They were likely extended families or several related families. Certainly some groups would have used the cave year after year, but varying styles of spear and arrow points tell us that it was inhabited by different bands. Twenty-four burials have been found in the cave, ranging from an infant to a 40- to 50-year-old woman. From the remains it appears that these people were short and muscular. In appearance they probably resembled the peoples Europeans first encountered in the 16th century.

The artifacts they left behind tell the story of the cave: the ebb and flow of habitation, whether the users were family groups or hunting parties, what they wore, what they ate, the tools they used. As archeologists dug down to the deepest artifacts more than 30 feet below the cave’s present floor, they traced the emergence of pottery more than 2,000 years ago, introduction of the bow and arrow, increasing sophistication of tools and weapons, and growing trade with other peoples for tools and ceremonial goods.

The inhabitants of Russell Cave practiced what anthropologists call "forest efficiency," using all the resources of the land. The wildlife they hunted – except for the porcupines and the peccary – are still found in the area: deer, turkey, black bear, turtle, raccoon, squirrel, and other small animals. They took shellfish from the river in nearby streams. Nuts, acorns, roots, wild fruits, and seeds were staples, as were seeds from goosefoot, a small flowering plant they raised in gardens.

Although times could be hard, especially during the winter, we should not think of these people as constantly struggling, living on the margin of existence. This was a good time for American Indians in the Southeast. In small family groups they harvested rich food sources according to the season, fully exploiting their environment without destroying what sustained them.

Russell Cave Geology

The rock out of which Russell Cave was carved was formed at the bottom of the inland sea then covering the region. A layer of carbonaceous deposits (skeletons and shells) was transformed into limestone by the pressure of overlying water, sand, and mud. After the sea retreated, water dripped through fissures in the limestone. The drips became rivulets and then underground streams that cut thousands of tunnels and caverns. The collapse of a cavern roof beneath a hillside in Doran Cove created a sinkhole and exposed a tunnel carrying water deeper beneath the ground – Russell Cave. Part of the tunnel entrance was raised above water level by continuing rockfalls, and it was here that humans sought shelter. It grew higher with silt deposited by flooding of the creek that still drains into the cave. The combined processes – deposits and ceiling rockfalls – caused the cave mouth to migrate up the hillside. Although the deposits eventually raised the floor above flood level, human debris and a steady rain of fine material from the roof raised it another 7 or 8 feet. Today the floor of the upper entrance is some 30 feet above the original rockfall.