# Mark Twain Cave

- **Country:** United States
- **Coordinates:** 39.688640, -91.331530
- **Location:** Hannibal, Missouri, U.S.
- **Show Cave:** 1886
- **Photo Caption:** The 1890 entrance to Mark Twain Cave

Mark Twain Cave — originally McDowell's Cave — is a show cave located near Hannibal, Missouri. It was named for author Mark Twain whose real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. Clemens lived in Hannibal from 1839 to 1853, age 4 to 17. It is the oldest operating show cave in the state, giving tours continuously since 1886. Along with nearby Cameron Cave, it became a registered National Natural Landmark in 1972, with a citation reading "Exceptionally good examples of the maze type of cavern development." The cave — as "McDougal's Cave" — plays an important role in Twain's 1876 novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and was renamed in honor of the author in 1880.

![Photo of Mark Twain Cave](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/MarkTwainCave.jpg)

**Source:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Twain_Cave (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)