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Publication Date
2023
Document Type
Article
Abstract
Intensive tourist operations at Mammoth Cave began in 1838 when Frank Gorin purchased the cave property. He brought with him Stephen Bishop, an enslaved person who would become famous across the Western world for his explorations of the cave and his knowledge of its geology. Gorin would also lease Nicholas and Matterson Bransford, and these three men would begin a 100-year history of black guides at Mammoth Cave. This essay utilizes source material written by white visitors in diaries, guidebooks, and travelers’ accounts to better understand white supremacy during the mid to late 19th century. The guides were in a unique position, as the acknowledgement of their knowledge and leadership were necessary for the operation of the cave during a period in which both of these were denied for most Black Americans. This essay argues that the guides at the cave demonstrated legitimate environmental expertise, but that this expertise was part of a racialized performance put on for curious visitors, and despite being provided empowerment by their occupation the guides still lived lives controlled by white supremacy.
Repository Citation
Garcia, Seth, "A Peculiar Institution: White Supremacy and the Black Guides of Mammoth Cave" (2023). Libraries Award for Undergraduate Scholarship. 10.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/libraries_undergraduate_scholarship/10
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African American Studies Commons, Other Geography Commons, United States History Commons
