Local Gundungarra tribes knew Jenolan Caves area as 'Binoomea'
(Dark Places) and possibly shunned them; in approximately
1835-40 the area was recorded for the first time by either
James, Charles or Alf Whalan, three brothers who each claimed to
have discovered the caves while searching for a bushranger,
James McKeown, whom they claimed used the caves as a hide-out.
One of the less-visited caverns in the area is called McKeown's
Hole, however there is no actual evidence of his existence. It
is more likely the brothers were searching for cattle that had
strayed from their nearby farm.
One theory is that the name "Jenolan" is said to come from
"Genowlan", the Aboriginal name for a local mountain peak.
Another theory is that is derived from the name of an early
settler, J. Nolan.
The caves, then known as the Fish River Caves, came under New
South Wales Government control in 1866, becoming only the second
area in the world reserved for the purpose of conservation and
the following year Jeremiah Wilson was appointed as the first
"Keeper of the Caves". Wilson not only explored the already
known Elder and Lucas Caves but later discovered the Imperial,
Left Imperial (now known as Chifley), Jersey and Jubilee Caves.
The caves were open to tourism early, but there was little
protection from visitors damaging formations until souveniring
was banned in 1872. In 1884 the name Jenolan Caves was adopted,
an Aboriginal name meaning 'high place' as it is named after
Mount Jenolan nearby.
The road to the caves originally went in from Tarana, which
meant that travellers from the south had to take a long,
roundabout route of about 90 miles from Katoomba to Oberon, and,
from there, to Tarana.
In the mid-1880s, hotel keepers in Katoomba wanted to improve
business by constructing a road to the Caves from their town,
but the steep, rough ground between the caves and town was a
major obstacle, and several attempts failed. However,
representations were made to the state premier by Peter
Fitzpatrick of Burragorang, who was connected to some mining
operations near Katoomba.
In April, 1884, William Marshall Cooper, Surveyor of Public
Parks for the State Government, was assigned the job, and worked
out a horse-and-carriage track in a 10-day trek from Katoomba to
the Caves. The route was, he remarked, 26.5 miles from the
Western Hotel in Katoomba. "... Anyone accustomed to walking can
do it comfortably in 12 hours... when the proposed horse track
is completed, it will be a very enjoyable ride of five hours."
It became known as the Six Foot Track.
Cooper also pointed out that "Fish River Caves" was a misnomer,
the Fish River being on the western side of the Dividing Range
and the caves on the eastern side. At his suggestion, the caves
were officially named "Jenolan Caves" in 1884 after the parish
in which they are situated.
By 1885, Parliament had approved ₤2,500 for the construction of
Cooper's bridle track, with the work starting at the most
difficult area, the Megalong Cleft, where a zig-zag had to be
cut, partly in solid rock, to reduce the grade to 1:5.5.
The first recorded passage of the completed bridle track from
Katoomba to Jenolan was by the governor, Lord Carrington, in
September 1887. Lord Carrington also made the first official
visit to the caves at the completion of his journey, accompanied
by Wilson.
In 1898 the current Caves House guesthouse was built, replacing
the earlier wooden accommodation house built by Jeremiah Wilson,
which had been destroyed in a fire.
James Wiburd become "Keeper of the Caves" in 1903 and quickly
discovered five more caves within eighteen months: the River,
Pool of Cerberus, Temple of Baal, Orient and Ribbon Caves. He
remained Keeper until 1932, when he left following a bitter
dispute over the development of the Ribbon Cave for tourism.
The Chifley Cave, originally known as the Left Imperial Cave but
named for Prime Minister Ben Chifley in 1952, was the first of
the caves to be lit with electric light, as early as 1880. In
1968, the Orient Cave became the first in the world to be
cleaned, due to contamination from a nearby coal boiler. This
was entering the cave via a new tunnel blasted 400 feet through
to the Orient cave in the 1950s to allow easier access (entering
at Bat End). Steam cleaning was found to be damaging to the
crystal formations, due to the rapid expansion and contraction
caused by the heat from the steam, and these days water from the
caves' own underground rivers is used if cave cleaning becomes
necessary. |