Mammoth Cave National Park
United States · Americas
About
Mammoth Cave National Park is a national park of the United States in south-central Kentucky. It encompasses portions of Mammoth Cave, the longest known cave system in the world. The park's 52,007 acres (21,046 ha) are located primarily in Edmonson County, with small areas extending eastward into Hart and Barren counties. The Green River runs through the park, with a tributary called the Nolin River feeding into the Green just inside the park.
The cave system has formally been known as the Mammoth–Flint Ridge Cave System since 1972, when a connection was discovered between Mammoth Cave and the even longer system under Flint Ridge to the north. As of 2025, more than 426 miles (686 km) of passageways had been surveyed, over 1.5 times longer than the second-longest cave system, Mexico's Ox bel ha underwater cave.
The park was established as a national park on July 1, 1941, after oft-contentious eminent domain proceedings whose consequences still affect the region. It was named a World Heritage Site on October 27, 1981; an international Biosphere Reserve on September 26, 1990; and an International Dark Sky Park on October 28, 2021.
Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.