nature

Caved In: The Life and Death of Floyd Collins

Floyd was a born caver. He lived and breathed caves, until one day, he found himself trapped in the very place he loved the most.

Show Notes

Growing up at the height of the Kentucky Cave Wars,  Floyd Collins delighted in searching for the next great cave. He could never have imagined the reach his story would have or how it would still influence and move people even today. But he may still be there in the depths of the darkness in the caves of Kentucky…

References

Jones, Malcolm (July 14, 2018). “Floyd Collins’ Ghostly Presence Haunts Mammoth Cave,” DailyBeast.com, retrieved from: https://www.thedailybeast.com/floyd-collins-ghostly-presence-haunts-mammoth-cave?ref=scroll

Meier, Allison (Oct. 12, 2013). “The Corpse of a Cave Explorer That Became a Tourist Attraction,” Atlas Obscura, retrieved from: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/31-days-of-halloween-floyd-collins

Winer, Adam (Dec. 7, 2012). “Tour guide says long-dead explorer haunts Mammoth Cave,” Wave 3 News (NBC TV station), retrieved from: https://www.wave3.com/story/20284357/tour-guide-says-long-dead-explorer-haunts-mammoth-cave/

Editors (no date). “Floyd Collins,” National Park Service, retrieved from: https://www.nps.gov/people/floyd-collins.htm

Editors (no date). “The Kentucky Cave Wars,” National Park Service, retrieved from: https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/the-kentucky-cave-wars.htm

Editors (April 27, 2021 – last edit). “Mammoth Cave National Park,” Wikipedia.org, retrieved from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammoth_Cave_National_Park

Tabler, Dave (April 19, 2017). “The Kentucky Cave Wars,” Appalachian History.net, retrieved from: https://www.appalachianhistory.net/2017/04/kentucky-cave-wars.html

Ghost Ghoul (Oct. 29, 2018). “Is Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave Haunted?,” Ghostsnghouls.com, retrieved from: https://ghostsnghouls.com/haunted-mammoth-cave/

Wolfson, Andrew (Nov. 18, 2018). “Tiny reporter couldn’t free trapped caver in 1925, but became big hero,” Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY), retrieved from: https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/2018/11/18/courier-journal-reporter-became-big-national-hero/1123958002/

Reilly, Lucas (July 13, 2018). “The 1925 Cave Rescue That Captivated the Nation,” MentalFloss.com, retrieved from: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/544782/1925-cave-rescue-that-captivated-the-united-states-floyd-collins

Murray, Robert K. and Roger W. Buckner (Dec. 31, 1982). “Trapped! The Story of Floyd Collins,” University of Kentucky Press.

No author (Feb. 5, 1925). “Cave Floor Expands and Entombs Collins,” Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN).

No author (Feb. 6, 2000). “Caver Collins Cornered Spotlight,” The Tennessean (Nashville, TN).

No author (Feb. 5, 1925). Floyd Collins update, The Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY), page 3.

No author (Feb. 7, 1925). Floyd Collins update, The Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY), page 1.

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Researched & Written by Kim Douthit 

Edited & Produced by Gabi Fiore

Music by Dan Moretti