The Invented Indigenous Histories of Appalachian Show Caves

Show caves–caves operated as commercial attractions–have been a fixture of Appalachian tourism since the 19th century. In this talk, Dr. Chelsea Fisher, assistant professor in the University of South Carolina Department of Anthropology, will examine Appalachian show caves as a technology of colonialism, which extended principles of terra nullius (“nobody’s land”) underground by casting caves as empty wastes and then filling them with settler fantasies about Indigenous culture and history.

Through an exploration of Gilded Age and Victorian-era show cave guidebooks, souvenirs, literature, and other memorabilia, Fisher will show how seemingly innocuous tourist traps reproduce settler fantasies, and discuss how expelling these fantasies can make room for the restoration of anti-colonial and Indigenous histories to subterranean realms.

Presented in person and virtually. Register to attend via Zoom.