~The Underwater World Beneath our Feet on the Mother Road ~
- Jax Welborn
- Jan 1
- 4 min read
You Don't Know Waynesville...
This is the fifth post in my "You Don't Know Waynesville" series. Stay tuned as we uncover more hidden history and obscure traditions from our Route 66 town. What should I cover next? Let me know in the comments.
The Roubidoux Spring has drawn people to its banks for thousands of years—first Native Americans, then pioneers on the Wire Road, Cherokee families during the Trail of Tears, and countless Route 66 travelers seeking respite along the Mother Road. Today, this natural wonder continues to captivate visitors with its brilliant turquoise waters and mysterious depths, serving as both a beloved community gathering place and a world-class destination for technical cave divers. What lies beneath these crystal-clear waters is a story millions of years in the making, revealed only to those brave enough to explore the darkness below.
Stand at the edge of Roubidoux Spring in Roy Laughlin Memorial Park, in Waynesville, Missouri and you’re looking at more than a beautiful swimming spot—you’re standing above one of America’s most extraordinary underwater cave systems, powered by millions of gallons of water surging from deep within the Ozarks.
An Underground River
Beneath Route 66 in downtown Waynesville lies an 11,000+ foot underwater cave system that has captivated cave divers for decades. Divers have explored passages extending 11,256 feet with depths plunging to 270 feet. These aren’t quick recreational dives—a single exploration dive of the Roubidoux Spring cave system takes 16 hours to complete.
You can see and/or purchase their map here:
The Ozark Cave Diving Alliance maintains a permit allowing them to dive the site, continuing exploration of this subterranean wonder. The modern era of Roubidoux cave diving began in 1969 when Don Rimbach and John Viper cleared the spring opening and became the first known divers to enter the spring’s depths.
A Torrent from the Deep
But here’s what makes Roubidoux Spring truly remarkable: while divers explore miles of passages below, the spring pumps out an average of 37 million gallons of crystal-clear water every single day. During peak flow conditions, that volume surges to 47 million gallons daily—enough to fill approximately 71 Olympic-sized swimming pools every 24 hours. This constant flow ranks it as Missouri’s 16th largest spring.
Vintage Route 66 postcards proudly proclaimed “Big Spring, Waynesville, MO - Maximum Flow 47,000,000 Gallons Per Day, On U.S. Highway 66,” advertising this natural wonder to travelers on the Mother Road. The spring has been pumping this enormous volume for millennia.
Layers of History Above and Below
That same water where children splash today, where you can dip your toes on a summer afternoon, has witnessed centuries of human history. Cherokee detachments stopped at this very spring during the Trail of Tears in the late 1830s. Civil War soldiers drank from it. Early Route 66 travelers marveled at it and sent postcards home featuring its turquoise waters.
In 1940, Dr. Ralph Ogden DeWitt recognized the spring’s significance when he built Pulaski County’s first modern hospital on the bluff overlooking Roubidoux Spring. His 15-bed hospital featured operating and delivery rooms, with his own residence in the building. The view from Dr. DeWitt’s hospital, captured in historical photographs, shows the same spectacular spring formation that draws visitors today.
Then and Now: 80 Years of Photography
The remarkable consistency of Roubidoux Spring across eight decades is captured in paired photographs: W.H. Pohl’s 1944 image from the Missouri State Archives DNR Geology and Mines Photograph Collection shows the spring’s limestone bluff and clear pool, while 2024 photographs document the same geological features, the same crystalline water, even the same view from the hillside that Dr. DeWitt would have seen from his hospital.
A Living Landmark
Roubidoux Spring represents a rare intersection of natural wonder, recreational opportunity, and technical diving challenge—all within Roy Laughlin Memorial Park. While most cities might fence off such a feature or commercialize it extensively, Waynesville maintains it as an accessible community space where the spring’s history and natural beauty remain central.
From above, you see the spring’s brilliant turquoise waters. From below, cave divers navigate through over two miles of underwater passages. And through it all, 37 to 47 million gallons of water flow daily, just as they have for thousands of years.
Local legend says if you dip your toes in Roubidoux Spring, you’ll return to Waynesville someday. Given what lies both beneath and around those blue-green waters, it’s easy to understand why people keep coming back.
----
**Sources:**
- Missouri State Archives, RG110 DNR Geology and Mines Photograph Collection
- Ozark Cave Diving Alliance (OCDA) Official History
- “Early Doctors & Hospitals of the Ozarks” https://a.co/d/jhgKBq9
- Vintage Route 66 Postcards Collection
- City of Waynesville Official Records
- Visit Missouri Tourism Data
**Photography Credits:**
- 1944: W.H. Pohl, Courtesy Missouri State Archives
- 2024: Jax Welborn, Pics by Jax LLC / “Show Me Waynesville” Photograph Collection
#YouDontKnowWaynesville #Route66 #WaynesvilleMO #RoubidouxSpring #CaveDiving #MissouriCaves #MissouriSprings #OzarksCaves #UnderwaterCave #OzarksBeauty #NaturalWonders #HiddenGems #SpringCity #MotherRoad #MissouriRoute66
Comments