Thursday, February 18, 1965
New Cave
This fall, a cave was discovered between Cass and Durbin, and, upon completion of the exploration of its many passageways, it may well turn out to be the largest in West Virginia. The entrance is located only fifty feet from Back Mountain Road, on the property of O. D. Cassell. The extent of the cave’s main tunnels is not yet known, but several people who have been inside claim to have explored up to two miles of passages. The walls and ceilings are wide and high enough to enable even the largest person to walk comfortably through, and several rooms reach dimensions as great as forty feet in height and sixty feet in diameter.
Beautiful formations of travertine or dripstone are found all throughout the cave. Stalactites and stalagmites of impressive size and beauty are fairly abundant, and columns are found in many of the smaller passageways. Crystal clear pools and even two underground waterfalls are also contained herein. Several deep wells with the cave are another spectacular sight, but also afford a dangerous hazard to any inexperienced cave explorers.
With the exception of one channel, through which an icy stream flows, the cave is dry. Whether this changes with weather conditions and seasons has not been established as of yet. Constant water seepage into the cave enables one to clearly see the continuing process by which the stalactites and other speleothems are still forming.
Geologically speaking, the cave has been formed in the solid limestone rock by the erosion and dissolution of underground streams. There are many small branches off the one large channel, revealing a large and extensive network of winding passageways. A huge 188 foot sinkhole and another large cave are located only several hundred feet from the entrance to this Cassell’s Windy Cave, and there is a definite possibility that all three are connected in the same network of caverns….
Joseph P. Lewis
University of Notre Dame
South Bend, Indiana
BIRTHS
Born to Mr. and Mrs. Fred Shafer, of Marlinton, a daughter, named Karen Lynn.
Born to Mr. and Mrs. Glenn Corbett, of Cass, a son, named James Omer.
Born to Mr. and Mrs. Steven Burks, of Renick, a son.
Born to Captain and Mrs. John Ligon Coyner, in Heidelberg, Germany, a son, named Boyd Franklin.
Born to Conservation Officer and Mrs. Elmo Bennett, of Martinsburg, a daughter, named Gina Michele. The mother is the former Mary Etta Smith.
DEATHS
Porter J. Sharp, about 62, died of an apparent heart attack at his farm on Stony Creek.
George B. Wanless, 79, of Huntersville; a son of the late Ralph and Laura Gum Wanless. Burial in the Beaver Creek Cemetery.
Mrs. Annie Park Workman, 61, of Marlinton; death attributed to cancer. She was a daughter of the late James David and Nancy Scott Loving. Burial in the Cochran Cemetery.
Mrs. Ruth Rhea Ervine, 45, of Charleston, formerly of Marlinton; a daughter of the late Hugh Rhea and Mollie McCarty Rhea. Burial in Marlinton.
William Arthur Lambert, 86, of Durbin; a retired farmer. Burial in the Arbovale Cemetery.
