Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Forgotten Brewery Caves - Lake Delton, Wisconsin.

Today a 19th century cave whose history is so forgotten that it is unclear if it actually was intended to be a beer storage cave.

Delton, to call it by its original name, was a community that blossomed in the 1860s, then went into a long decline.  Built near Dell Creek, a tributary of the Wisconsin River, it had the usual agricultural roots as well as an early manufacturing base.

I have seen both 1857 and 1860 cited as dates for the first dam across Dell Creek, creating a body of water first called LeBars Pond, later, and more poetically, Mirror Lake.  A lumber mill was established then a grist mill.

Near the mill was a man made cave.  The origins of this are obscure but whatever its original purpose it later became a saloon.

Long known as "The Grotto" it is shown here in what I think may have been its Prohibition phase. An enlarged view shows ads for cigars and for "Altpeter's Root Beer".  The Altpeter bottling company was in nearby Baraboo.


In later years the establishment was known as "The Dam Site Tavern" and was run by a certain "Bunny" Page.  It was a rather sketchy establishment lacking running water or rest rooms.  Sometimes the flimsy wooden front of the bar would fall down.  Patrons would just prop it back up and continue their fun.  It was closed down in 1966.

The site today:


The bridge going up and over the cave is South Burritt Avenue.  As I am standing Dell Creek is right behind me.  Water is still going over the dam at a good clip.  There is a nice parking spot that I assume is mostly used by fishermen.  None were on hand when I visited.  There are no nearby facilities so one can only imagine what patrons of "The Grotto" did to answer the call of nature.  I hope not too many of them fell into the creek.

I can't say I have ever visited a more colorful cave. An original feature of the excavation was this interesting curved bench.  It had a presumably later coat of plaster or cement put over the rock.  A similar floor can be seen in places.  I did not see any drainage channels.


In trying to figure out whether a cave was used for beer storage it is helpful to find vent holes.  Not an absolute but a good clue.  They pretty much mean that something temperature sensitive was stored there.  I did find this odd feature - which is being lit up by my flashlight - but it is narrower than any vent I have seen.  I think it was a chimney.


That would fit it in with this nearby feature which looks original.  The more recent charcoal notwithstanding I suspect this was a niche for a stove.


For a small cave it has a lot of graffiti.  Flags from Russia, Mexico, Kazakhstan!  I doubt this little town has that many foreign exchange students.  The nearby Wisconsin Dells is a major entertainment complex and hires seasonal workers from all over the world.


It is an enigma.  I don't buy the theory that it was built as a saloon.  It is sitting on a narrow ledge just above a creek.  The town was small in the 1860s and in any event was nearly a mile away.  If you are going to build a saloon you make it out of wood.  Wood is cheap.  In fact, if you own a sawmill, wood is effectively free.

The ledge looks more like what I have seen in hotel storage caves.  Perhaps there was a boarding house associated with the mill?  As to it being a brewery cave I must reluctantly say, probably not. Oh, it would be a good location for one.  A ready supply of ice and a nice bit of flat ground up above for a brewery.  But......no.  It is too small for one thing. The furthest I might go is to say that perhaps somebody tried to build a beer storage cave but ran into or out of something.  Into a hard, unworkable layer of stone.  Or out of money to start a brewery.  I could imagine somebody taking a partially finished cave and adding a few features such as the stove niche at a date early enough that they look to be original.



11 comments:

Anonymous said...

I visited the cave in the mid-60's. It was a teen bar called the "DAM SITE CAVE IN", 0wned by my friend's Uncle Bunny. Uncle Bunny lived in a decrepit mansion on Mirror Lake, since demolished and now part of the state park.

Tacitus said...

Fascinating. I had assumed Bunny was a woman. Uncle Bunny sounds like a very unusual individual. Perhaps eccentric even by the rather eclectic standards of Wisconsin Dells...

TW

Unknown said...

Bunny was a nickname for Bunnell. I remember him also being referred to as "Bun" by my parents.

Tacitus said...

Thanks, and welcome to Lake Delton fans who have wandered over this way. I've given this cave a fair amount of thought. It "looks" like the sort of cave a small brewery of the 1850's would use to age lager beer, but it is not quite right. No floor drains (although they could have been covered over) and a length/width/depth ratio that would not be great for constant temps. But why would a mill need cold storage? I've seen very similar caves (often natural niches enlarged) used as storage for hotels and such. So my off the cuff theory is that perhaps the mill had an associated boarding house and needed a place to keep foodstuffs.

Or maybe not.

Kilbourn City/Wisconsin Dells has some interesting cave lore that I have not gotten around to writing about...

Tim Wolter

Anonymous said...

My wife and I had our wedding reception at Ishnala the afternoon of 9/19/1964. After the reception there was a post-reception party at Bunny Page's "The Cave". It was wicked fun!

Tacitus said...

That just sounds fun!

Kietz said...

Does Uncle Bunny have any pictures to share of when it ran as a bar? That would be so neat to see!

Tacitus said...

Well I am certainly not Uncle Bunny. I have been meaning to revisit the story....Bunny sounds like a very interesting fellow....

Tim Wolter

Robert Marshall said...

I visited this bar during a few summers in the mid-sixties. As the “designated driver” back then, I got to watch the nightly shenanigans with a clear head. Best experience: a guy rides (crashes) his motorcycle right through the front (closed) door and up to the “bar”. Door got propped up as previously mentioned and the frivolity continued.

scott M. said...

When I was a young lad my father built Pioneer Park on Fern Dell Rd. Further up the Road was a Road that led to the right to a house that belonged to Eleanore Hamilton who's brother was Bunny Page. I rented Eleanore's house from her one fall. No running water or toilet facilities. I met Bunny and as with Eleanore the two were rather odd. I know that area like the back of my hand.

Anonymous said...

I knew bunny back in early 70's. Nice man who got screwed by DNR as they took his house as part of mirror lake state park.He fought very hard to keep it and spent every dime he had.