Stephen Bishop

As early as 1839 an enslaved Black man named Black man named Stephen Bishop lead many of the earliest explorations of Mammoth Cave in the state of Kentucky. One of the first tourist attractions in North America, this vast cavern spans more than 406 miles beneath the Earth’s surface. With a keen sense of direction and spacial acuity Bishop identified named and mapped many of the cave’s prominent features. Bishop was said to have guided the most prominent scientists, political figures and writers of the mid-19th century including the poet Ralph Waldo Emerson. It was on a visit to Mammoth Cave guided by Bishop that Emerson was inspired to write the essay Illusions, based on a dazzling display called the Star Camber. With expertise as a talented storyteller Bishop became as well known as the cave itself. Four generations Black Americans would become guides in Mammoth Cave until it was designated as the 27th National Park in 1941. But due to racial segregation of federal service during the Jim Crow era, all Black guides including Bishop’s descendants were told to leave.

https://www.nps.gov/people/stephen-bishop.htm

The Joy Trip Project celebrates Black History Month. The Unhidden Minute is part of the Unhidden Podcast Project supported through a National Geographic Explorer Grant from the National Geographic Society, with the cooperation of the National Park Service. This series elevates the untold stories of Black American history.

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