Saltpeter and the James Brothers in a Cave

About an hour from Saint Louis is a huge set of caves called Meramac Caverns.  We went on a guided tour of the caves that were once supposedly a hideout for Jesse & Frank James, and which were definitely used as a gunpowder factory for a large portion of the Civil War.  We took a lot of pictures in the caves, so I'll just post a bunch and caption them.

This is the front of the entrance building & gift shop.  First thing we saw.  Naturally.

Once you've purchased your ticket, the entrance to the caverns themselves awaits.

According to the tour guide, this structure has nothing to do with either the caves or the James boys.  It is a Moonshiner's shack found in the nearby hills/mountains.

There's a statue of the Frank and Jesse James in the cavern where they were hiding at one time, along with a few artifacts that were left behind when they escaped the law.

Stalactites and Stalagmites.

Formations within the caves.

A 2'-3' deep river ran through most of the caverns.

Chris with the water & formations.

Gwen with the formations and water.

The "living" side of a formation that grew so large that it cut off its own water supply on the other side.

Colorful deposits and crystals.

A "Wine Table" formation.  The metal brace was added because some kids damaged the formation by doing pull-ups on it at some point in the past.

The tour ended with a light show and video projected on a massive stone curtain.

I'm pretty sure that this statue is identical to the one inside the caves.  For what it's worth, it's the James brothers.