Weird Wednesdays: Cave House, Festus Missouri

Travel 1 Minute

This month’s Weird Wednesday house is actually a cave!  The story comes from UnusualPlaces.Org.

There is a cave in Missouri, USA, that has a particularly storied history.

It began as a mine underneath a forest in the 1930s. In the 1950s, the 17,000 square foot space became ‘Caveland’ – a roller skate rink and concert venue that played host to major pop acts, including Tina Turner.

Caveland closed its doors in 1985, and it was transformed again, this time into a glass recycling center until it shut in 1990.

After that, it stood unused, seemingly for good. Then, finally, in 2003, it was discovered for sale online by Curt and Deborah Sleeper. The couple fell in love with the cave, bought it, and set about the arduous task of turning it into a home.

It nearly didn’t happen at all. Struggles in financing the cave’s purchase meant the Sleepers were on the verge of moving to Belize before the owner finally agreed to a down payment of half the value in return for funding the rest.

With finances stretched to the limit, he Sleepers enlisted acquaintances’ help to build the property from glass doors and other material from a nearby store. In the meantime, they lived in a giant tent inside the cave.

Four years later, the cave had been converted into an incredible three-bedroom house and office space. Inside, the space is vast (the cave itself is three acres in size), with dining and living rooms on the ground floor and the bedrooms on a mezzanine above the kitchen. The property also benefits from a natural spring.

The website, caveland.us, is currently run by the Sleeper family and they still live in the home. It is located at 1101 North 11th Street in Festus.

SOURCE: UNUSUAL PLACES.ORG   MIKE J HALL

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Published by pat frederick

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120 thoughts on “Weird Wednesdays: Cave House, Festus Missouri”

  1. For sure, Architectural Digest and Southern Living are not going to do a feature on this cave dwelling. The dwelling is not artistic to say the least. They even left the lumber mill markings on the lumber on the ‘mezzanine’ framework. The umbrella over the office makes me wonder there are drips of condensation or spring water coming down through the cave rock.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Morning GA!

      it wasn’t originally supposed to be a house but when they did repurpose it to be a house, they should have paid more attention to details…lol

      I would NOT want to live at all!

      Liked by 2 people

    2. Morning, GA and Pat! Nope, I sure wouldn’t want to live there. I need to be able to see some sunshine from all sides. I don’t like being underground at all.

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Morning Filly!
        I like our windows–although being underground does have some advantages–like our basement at the back half of the house. it’s underground, so the temp is great for storing the wine!

        Liked by 1 person

        1. I really wouldn’t mind having a basement as long as it’s a case of only going down there when I want to, mostly for storage or tornadoes – I want my laundry on the main floor. Sometimes, when I’m sitting here fantasizing about what I would do to change this place, I’ve considered if it would be possible to put a basement underneath the house. But I expect that would require a more substantial foundation than cement blocks. Meaning a LOT of $$$$!

          Liked by 2 people

          1. our laundry is on the main floor here too.
            we have the garage, the freezer, furnace and storage in the basement–and the smaller wood pile.
            we watched a mobile home, last summer, put in a basement. complicated procedure but it was done quickly

            Liked by 1 person

            1. Was it still on wheels and axles? That makes a big difference. My house was listed as a mobile home on the tax records, which prevented me from getting homeowner’s insurance. Once the county came out and inspected it to assure that the axles had been removed and it was already on a foundation, it was changed to being the same as a “stick-built” house which then qualified it for the insurance. But it was soooo fricking expensive, I dropped it after a few years.

              My house would require a bunch of supports put in to raise it up in order to dig a basement and put in a new foundation.

              Liked by 1 person

              1. it had to be raised and supported–which is why we noticed it in the first place. then the basement dug out and by the time we went by again, the house was down on the ground and the ground around it seeded.

                Liked by 1 person

              3. i suspect they did it because there were close–thankfully not close enough–to the gigantic flooding that happened the year before that wiped out loads of mobile homes along that river. those trashed mobile homes are STILL laying there…some still half in a tree.

                Liked by 1 person

  2. Good morning, Miss Pat – today in N FL – it’s 46º and supposed to hit 77º in the afternoon. We are predicted to hit 84º on Friday and then the next rainy days will come, followed by windy days to cool things down.

    I’m repacking more Spring colors when I return to the Village. Hopefully, I can come home more regular basis to tend the yard and household chores. Got to gather the paperwork to file taxes with IRS. 

    Liked by 1 person

    1. We’re at 42* so we’re still making fires in the wood stove and wearing our thermals…lol

      I did our taxes weeks ago–the ones we were owed? they went out right away. the ones we owed? well they will sit for a little while yet…LOL

      Liked by 1 person

    2. Morning, GA! Taxes? What are those? LOL – not for me any more. But I don’t have investments and such so…..hope things can get back on an even keel for you now.

      Liked by 2 people

        1. Yes, but that requires income that necessitated the withholding tax. The only income I have is SS = no taxes. And since I now qualify for the Homestead Exemption, no property tax either. The only taxes I pay are on groceries & utilities.

          Liked by 1 person

            1. Really? Maybe it depends on how much SS someone gets? IDK – I only make just over $16K/year. The only time I’ve had to pay taxes was when I was working P/T and earned over a certain level – I never reached that level for Federal taxes. I paid State taxes but got it all back in a refund.

              Liked by 1 person

              4. If she can qualify, it would only mean one trip per year to the county CH – surely someone could give her a ride to do that? That is assuming she has to physically go to file it – some states may not require that. And no $$$ to someone else to prepare taxes for her.

                Like

            2. It depends on her age, I think, and any other income she might have but I’m not really up on all the details since I never make enough for it to matter.

              Liked by 1 person

              1. well she’s 85.
                there is a local woman who comes to senior citizens in the area to do their taxes–it’s cheap she says and she’s been doing them for years. it’s nice for seniors like my mom who don’t drive.

                Liked by 1 person

  12. sunnydaze

    March 13, 2024 1:35 am

    ….” A pair of Staten Island lawyers offered Tuesday to represent any Big Apple firefighter for free if they get jammed up for booing state Attorney General Letitia James at last week’s raucous promotion ceremony.

    Lawyers Mark Fonte and Louis Gelormino said the firefighters had the right to voice their support for Donald Trump and to lambast James, who has been prosecuting him — as FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanaugh threatens to discipline the jeering Bravest.

    “If you are being ‘hunted down’ by FDNY brass for exercising your freedom of speech contact our office at once,” the men’s firm, F&G Legal Group, wrote in a letter to the Fire Department’s rank-and-file.”……

    https://nypost.com/2024/03/12/us-news/nyc-lawyers-offer-to-rep-firefighters-for-free-if-theyre-disciplined-for-booing-ag-letitia-james/

    Liked by 2 people

  15. When I opened the patio door blinds and put Wheezer’s food out, he was sleeping on his chair. He’s doing his cute little silent “mews” that he uses when he is feeling somewhat cordial…but not enough to get close to me. I’ve decided not to push that – summer is coming and I will be outside a lot so we’ll wait and see. Besides, you can’t blame him when I went after him with the spray bottle after he scratched me last fall. LOL – he still has to learn his boundaries but I’ll figure something out instead of the spray bottle next time.

    Liked by 2 people

      1. Oh, yeah – I doubt he would come around at all w/o some level of trust. It’s clear he doesn’t need the food I provide to survive altho that is certainly a big draw for him. I was pleased to see that his congestion is apparently now gone completely and no scratching at his ears.

        Liked by 1 person

  16. so maggot is setting a precedence. commit a crime then act befuddled and boom! you’re not guilty. Note the lawyer’s claim that her “mental health” is a priority…BS

    FTA

    When Carlethia “Carlee” Russell was convicted in Hoover for faking her own abduction, her attorneys took the case to the state level to appeal. However, it appears the parties have had a change of heart.

    Russell’s state trial was scheduled for March 18, but that trial has been canceled, and now there will be a plea hearing. Russell is expected to plead guilty.

    A Hoover municipal judge found Russell guilty of false reporting to law enforcement. She was ordered to a year in jail and nearly $20,000 in fines.

    Russell’s case gained national attention after she disappeared from the side of Interstate 459 in Hoover on July 13, 2023. Investigators said moments before she disappeared, she called 911, saying there was a toddler on the side of the interstate in a diaper.

    She then called a family friend to tell her about the situation, and the friend heard a scream and then nothing but traffic noise.

    First responders arrived to find Russell’s vehicle, wig and cell phone but no toddler.

    A full-scale search was launched, including local, state and federal agencies.

    Russell walked up to her home on July 15 and was taken to the hospital for evaluation. She told a story about a kidnapping. However, detectives determined the whole thing was a hoax.

    Detectives discovered Russell had “Googled” the movie “Taken” and searched for information on the Amber Alert system ahead of the incident.

    Russell has not publicly spoken about the incident or explained why she faked her own abduction or where she was during the two days. Her attorney said those details would eventually be divulged, but his client’s mental health was a priority.

    https://1819news.com/news/item/carlee-russell-expected-to-walk-back-appeal-in-kidnapping-hoax-conviction

    Liked by 1 person

  18. Finally, we’ve got Robins! Supposed to get a bunch of rain tonight into tomorrow – possibly close to 2″ in some areas. Since we continue under severe drought, we definitely need it. When I go to Norfolk in a bit, I’m going to check into a trellis for the cantaloupes. Got to start planning this stuff since it appears that spring has sprung!

    Liked by 2 people

  19. EXCERPT: “While deleting old emails, I found an unread email that I received from a friend back on January 3rd, 2021. I was in the hospital at the time, and had no way of checking my emails. By the time I got out of the hospital and felt up to checking my emails, my inbox was flooded with thousands of emails. I only open emails from friends, family and associates in my personal email account. The rest goes directly into the junk folder to be reviewed again and deleted..

    Apparently, I missed a very important email. It’s important because it clearly exposes the truth about who turned a peaceful MAGA rally into a riot. To my surprise, the email stated: “media sources have been alerted that there will be an assault on Capitol Hill on Wednesday (January 6th) during the Republican challenge of the electoral vote count.” A link to the article was included, but when I clicked on it yesterday, the page had been scrubbed from the internet–like all the articles and web sites that stated Obama was born in Kenya.

    Moreover, the email included this quote from the article: “The purpose of the assault on Capitol hill is to redirect the public’s attention away from the stolen election, provide complicit Republicans with an excuse to turn on President Trump, and to taint any challenge to the misconduct and voter fraud that marked the 2020 election.” This article was written on or before January 3, 2021 because I received the email on January 3, 2021.

    Furthermore, on January 7, 2021, I received another email with a quote from a January 6th article, that proved beyond a shadow of doubt that the media knew about the riot on Capitol Hill before it actually happened. 

    In fact, NPR published an article, “Trump Supporters Storm U.S. Capital, Clash With Police” at 9:33 AM on January 6th; hours before the riot actually happened.

    The most enlightening part of the email was a quote from the January 3, article that stated: “Federal agent provocateurs (FBI agitators) have been instructed to infiltrate the crowd, disguised as Trump supporters, and incite the crowd to storm the Capital.” If that wasn’t bad enough, it went on to say: “A contingent of Capital police have been instructed to help the crowd gain entrance to the Capital and to assist in the destruction of government property.“

    The email went on to state that, “Free speech (truth) will be under attack by the media. Social media alternatives and conservative blogs will be shut down”. Then, on January 7th, the Google Play Store and the Apple Store removed the Parler app, and Amazon shut down Parler servers. And, we now know that Facebook and Twitter both censored all sources that questioned the 2021 election, or questioned what really happened on January 6th.

    The January 3, 2021 email included this statement: “U.S. Troops will be sent to the Capital to send a message to Trump supporters, that Washington leaders will use the U.S. military against them.”

    Much more: https://canadafreepress.com/article/january-6th-our-tax-dollars-being-used-against-us

    Liked by 1 person

  21. “Georgia judge overseeing 2020 election case dismisses some charges against Trump”

    By Madeleine Hubbard, Just The News

    Published: March 13, 2024 10:20am

    “The Fulton County judge overseeing the Georgia 2020 election case dismissed some charges against former President Donald Trump on Wednesday, although other charges remain.

    Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee said three of the charges against Trump must be quashed, per The Associated Press.”

    Liked by 1 person

  22. Awwww…..such a sweet story!!!

    “80 years after D-Day, World War II veteran is getting married near beaches where US troops landed”

    By The Associated Press and Terry Spencer

    Published: Mar. 10, 2024 at 3:26 AM CDT

    BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) – Harold Terens and his fiancee Jeanne Swerlin kissed and held hands like high school sweethearts as they discussed their upcoming wedding in France, a country the World War II veteran first visited as a 20-year-old U.S. Army Air Forces corporal shortly after D-Day.

    Terens, a gregarious and energetic 100-year-old, will be honored in June by the French as part of the 80th anniversary celebration of their country’s liberation from the Nazis. Then he plans to marry the sprightly 96-year-old Swerlin in a town near the beaches where U.S. troops landed.

    “I love this girl — she is quite special,” said Terens, who has been dating Swerlin since 2021. To demonstrate their fondness for dancing, they had Siri play “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars and then jumped, twisted and gyrated like teens at homecoming.

    “He’s an amazing guy, amazing,” Swerlin said. “He loves me so much and he says it.” “And my god, he’s the greatest kisser,” she said.

    (World War II veteran Harold Terens, 100, right, and Jeanne Swerlin, 96, snuggle during an interview, Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024, in Boca Raton, Fla. Terens will be honored by France as part of the country’s 80th anniversary celebration of D-Day. In addition, the couple will be married on June 8 at a chapel near the beaches where U.S. forces landed. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)(AP)

    The couple, who are each widowed, grew up in New York City: she in Brooklyn, he in the Bronx. They laugh at how differently they experienced World War II. She was in high school and dated soldiers who gave her war souvenirs like dog tags, knives and even a gun, trying to impress.

    Terens enlisted in 1942 and shipped to Great Britain the following year, attached to a four-pilot P-47 Thunderbolt fighter squadron as their radio repair technician. Terens said his original pilots all died in the war. “I loved all those guys. Young men. The average age was 26,” he said.

    On D-Day — June 6, 1944 — Terens helped repair planes returning from France so they could rejoin the battle. He said half his company’s pilots died that day. Terens went to France 12 days later, helping transport freshly captured Germans and just-freed American POWs back to England. To him, the Germans seemed happy because they would survive the war. The Americans, however, had been brutalized by their Nazi captors over months and even years.

    “They were in a stupor,” he said.

    He then went on a secret mission — even he didn’t know his destination. His planes hopscotched North Africa before eventually landing in Tehran. There, he survived a robbery that left him naked in the desert and fearing death until an American military police patrol happened by…..”

    Video:https://www.mysuncoast.com/2024/03/10/80-years-after-d-day-world-war-ii-veteran-is-getting-married-near-beaches-where-us-troops-landed/

    Liked by 1 person

  26. Republican Congressman Ken Buck is leaving Congress. Likely more RINOs to follow – the Uniparty doesn’t want Trump to have a majority in the House for his second term.

    Liked by 2 people

  28. Winston
    Winston
    March 13, 2024 12:08 pm

    Wall Street Apes
    @WallStreetApes

    American Cattle Rancher Exposing That They’ve All Been Sold Out, They’re At Risk Of Being Run Out Of Business & Your Meat Is Being Imported

    4 Large Mega Corporations Now Own 85% Of The Entire Industry. 2 Of Them Are Foreign Owned, 1 Of Them Is Chinese

    “50% or more of the beef processing be controlled by countries outside of the US. It comes down to our own food source security.”

    “We used to make fair amount of return on my cattle, but the industry has changed dramatically with the government allowing the consolidation of the meat processing business.

    4 companies, giant companies got together and decided to roll that up, consolidate it, and that’s just business. But when we get on the other side of it and we take into account the ramifications on our national economic health. It has a very detrimental effect.

    Our government allowed 2 giant companies controlled by foreign governments to come in and acquire.

    One of them is controlled by the Chinese, and they bought Smithville out of North Carolina. And the other one was a Brazilian company that came in and bought up one of the other major players.

    So now we have an industry, 85% of it actually has been consolidated and rolled up and controlled by 4 companies. Four companies now are dictating who gets what, where, and when. Do you see?

    But nobody thought our government would let 50% or more of the beef processing be controlled by countries outside of the US. It comes down to our own food source security.

    The geopolitical situation we find ourselves in, why would we want to have an antagonist on 25% of our meat processing? It makes no sense at all.”

    American Cattle Rancher Exposing That They’ve All Been Sold Out, They’re At Risk Of Being Run Out Of Business & Your Meat Is Being Imported

    4 Large Mega Corporations Now Own 85% Of The Entire Industry. 2 Of Them Are Foreign Owned, 1 Of Them Is Chinese

    “50% or more of the beef… pic.twitter.com/con571SzkG

    — Wall Street Apes (@WallStreetApes) March 13, 2024

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I posted something about that in the last couple of days, too. You can be sure that got blasted out to almost everyone in my e-mail list!!!

      Liked by 1 person

  30. I have returned – nothing interesting noted except that Mom does not have TED and has to get surgery on both eyes. I never did get it straight exactly why, as usual, but this was an Ophthalmology MD so I have to hope she got it right. She will have to go to Omaha or Lincoln for the surgery. I can’t take her since neither my truck nor her car are dependable enough. But my Sis or niece can do it; she wouldn’t want to stay with my Sis but she could stay with my niece if she needs to stay over.

    Grabbed a new coffee pot that doesn’t automatically go off in 2 hours; it’s 4 hours with this one so I’ll only have to re-start it 3 times instead of 5 or 6. Also grabbed a new throw to use in my recliner – the one I was using was my a-Mom’s and has fringe on the ends – I HATE that fringe! LOL – this one has no fringe and is nice and soft. Should be more comfortable. But I noticed some static electricity when I was unrolling it – not surprising since the atmosphere is still very dry. So I’ve got the tea kettle going again.

    Got some gas for $2.99/gal in Norfolk; it’s $3.19/gal up here. Everything costs more here!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. you’re back!

      you let you coffee on for hours???

      we shut ours off and if hubby wants more he just nukes it.

      we usually get a lot of static in the house eve though we have a big kettle on the wood stove that the water just evaporates from.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Oh, I drink coffee all day long – nothing but coffee…unless I’m out of creamer. Then I drink hot tea. But I did pick up a six-pack of 7-Up today. My GS had left one here and I drank it one day – really hit the spot so I decided to have some on hand.

        Liked by 1 person

        1. A lot of coffee makers burn the coffee after a while. I make pour over coffee into a thermal carafe and Sally Q has a 5 cup Mr Coffee – but I turn it off right away because it will get burnt if I don’t. I reheat leftovers in the microwave.

          Liked by 2 people

          1. I use a mug and 1/3 of it is creamer to start with; I continually refill the mug thru the day w/creamer and coffee. I’ll add water to the pot off and on until the coffee gets too weak; then I add a few spoons of coffee and refill it, re-setting the 4 hr timer. After I do that, I’ll add water off and on again, ad nauseum. Each time, because of the creamer and it being in a big mug, I have to MW it for 20-30 seconds since I like it really hot.

            I generally make it thru one day with only one series, but I start the day with the leftover coffee the next day so…and the whole process starts over again.

            Liked by 2 people

  32. This is all I got since it’s a paid article.

    “Fulton County: Six Charges Dismissed Against Trump — Explaining the dismissal and what comes next.”

    TECHNO FOG

    MAR 13, 2024

    Scott McAfee: What to know about the judge in Trump's Georgia case

    “Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee, presiding over Fani Willis’s case against Donald Trump, et al., has just quashed six charges of the indictment.”

    Continue reading this post for free, courtesy of Techno Fog.

    The legal order: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24478979-trump-order-on-defendants-special-demurrers

    [NF: Getting it for free requires downloading a “Free Substack App” with a CRS code, which I refuse to do – wouldn’t be a big deal, I expect, for those of you who use smart phones. I’ll post the link in case anyone else wants to download it.]

    https://technofog.substack.com/p/fulton-county-six-charges-dismissed

    Liked by 1 person

  33. “RNC sues Michigan Secretary of State Benson over voter roll maintenance”

    By Madeleine Hubbard, Just The News

    Published: March 13, 2024 12:33pm

    Updated: March 13, 2024 12:41pm

    ENTIRE ARTICLE: “The Republican National Committee on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson for allegedly not maintaining the state’s voter rolls as required by federal law. 

    “Election integrity starts with clean voter rolls, and that’s why the National Voter Registration Act requires state officials to keep their rolls accurate and up-to-date,” RNC Chairman Michael Whatley said “Jocelyn Benson has failed to follow the NVRA, leaving Michigan with inflated and inaccurate voter rolls ahead of the 2024 election.”

    An RNC analysis found that 76 of Michigan’s 83 counties have inflated voter rolls, which indicates that the state has not complied with the federal law, according to the Republican group.

    In addition to Benson, the lawsuit also names Michigan Bureau of Elections Director Jonathan Brater as a defendant. 

    The RNC is asking the court to determine that the Michigan officials are violating federal law and to issue an order instructing the defendants “to develop and implement reasonable and effective registration list-maintenance programs to cure their failure to comply … and to ensure that ineligible registrants are not on the voter rolls,” per the lawsuit.

    The case comes after Just the News found that more than 200 voter registration forms from the 2020 election in the city of Muskegon, Michigan, alone appeared to be fraudulent.”

    Liked by 1 person

    1. LOL – YOUR turn!!! You drive safely, too! And enjoy yourselves while you’re at it! That’s an order, young lady!

      Liked by 2 people

        1. LOL
          back when “couponing” was a things, my mom and her neighbors had a club and they would trade coupons and mail in offers–for so many UPC’s you get get stuff…i have 3 Lipton Tea Bag totes and a Lipton golf umbrella.
          i also had a Kraft mac & Cheese portable radio…lol

          Like

  42. Liked by 1 person

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