County: Cherokee

Date: 1980s or 1990s

Photographer: John Charlton/KGS

Place Name: Schermerhorn Cave

Short description: The cave in Schermerhorn Park, a mile south of Galena, is one of several Mississippian limestone caves in Cherokee County. Only the large mouth of the cave is open to the public. Past the mouth, the 2,566-foot-long, 2-foot-high passageway is mainly a low streambed. The limestone, formed from sediment in Mississippian-age seas that covered the area 345 million years ago, is the oldest rock found at the surface in Kansas.

Hi-Resolution Version

Credit: This photo may be reproduced for non-commercial and educational purposes. When using this photo in a publication, website, or presentation, please credit Kansas Geological Survey. For information about use for commercial purposes, please contact the KGS editor.