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Organ Cave is a large and historic cave in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, USA. The surrounding community takes its name from the cave.〔(A History Of Organ Cave Community )〕 In November 1973, the Organ Cave System — also known as the Organ-Hedricks Cave System〔Davies, William E. (1958, 1965), ''Caverns of West Virginia'', Geological and Economic Survey, Volume XIX A (with 1965 Supplement), West Virginia Geological Survey, pp 39, 41, 112; Supplement pg 22.〕 — was registered as a National Natural Landmark for being "the largest cave system in the State, containing many caves, one of which is Organ Cave. Noted also for its saltpeter troughs and vats." (It is now the third-longest known cave in the state, after the Friars Hole Cave System in the same county and the Hellhole System in Pendleton County.) Organ Cave has also been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2005.〔The commercial website dedicated to Organ Cave, as well as commercial signage in the area, asserts that it is a National Historic Landmark. It is not. Charitably interpreted, the managers have mistaken listing on the National Register of Historic Places with designation as a NHL.〕 ==History== Significant fossil discoveries bear witness to the early natural history of Organ Cave: giant ground sloth, grizzly bear, nine-banded armadillo, sabre-tooth cat, reindeer and an Ice Age porcupine.〔http://www.organcave.com/History.html〕 Organ Cave's human history is attested by flint arrowheads used by early American Indians. Evidence of early white settlers in the cave is suggested by the date "1704" scratched on a wall, but this may be a later addition since the first white settlers to Greenbrier County came only in the 1740s. The cave was used since before 1835 as a source for nitre (saltpeter) for the manufacture of gunpowder. During the American Civil War, Confederate soldiers under the command of General Robert E. Lee again mined the cave for nitre. The cave today has the nation's largest collection of Civil War-era saltpeter hoppers. Studies have shown the cave dirt is high in calcium nitrate, which was turned into potassium nitrate using these hoppers.〔("Confederate Boys and Peter Monkeys" ) by Lee Hadden. Armchair General. January 2005.〕 Organ Cave was first surveyed by members of the National Speleological Society in July 1948. For many years it was considered the longest cave in the world. , the Organ Cave System had of surveyed cave passage making it the 39th longest cave in the world, the 9th longest in the United States, and the 3rd longest in West Virginia.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Organ Cave」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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