Wabasha Street Caves

The Wabasha Street Caves in Saint Paul, Minnesota, are manmade chambers cut into sandstone cliffs along the Mississippi River and first excavated in the 1840s. Though popularly called caves, they are technically mines that served many uses over time, including storage, mushroom growing, and keeping food and belongings. In the 1920s they entered the city’s nightlife as the Wabasha Street Speakeasy, and in 1933 Josie and William Lehmann opened the Castle Royal in the cave face. Later reused as a disco and now an event and tour venue, the site is also known for dangerous abandoned passages that caused multiple deaths and added to its notoriety.

St. Paul, Minnesota · United States