Not much is known about Moonshiners Cave. If you do a web search nearly everyone will be passing around the same information. It was likely built around 1905 by a family and used as a root cellar. I reflected on this in the video below. It seems an awful lot of work to build such a well-constructed wall with a door and window for simply a root cellar. My guess is that someone lived there at one point and wanted it to feel homey (perhaps they had small kids and wanted them to have a sense of normalcy).

Your first view of the structure as you come down from the bluff above

Arkansas has a long history of Moonshining. As early as the 1830s, as Alabama was seeking statehood, a temperance movement began to grow. The sale of alcohol was increasingly limited as different laws were passed over the next 80 years, culminating in its complete prohibition in 1915, five years before the Volstead Act took effect, eliminating the sale for the entire United States. For a great history of it, visit here: https://onlyinark.com/featured/the-long-road-to-prohibition-in-arkansas/

Peaking around the corner from the trail to see the cave and its twin waterfalls

It is entirely plausible that some enterprising late-night alcohol producers would find the secluded shelter appealing for their business. However, no direct proof exists that moonshine was ever produced here. Granted, a lot can change in the century between prohibition and when I visited, but I can’t imagine it is very likely due to the difficulty in getting to the cave. Transporting the ingredients and final product back and forth seems unlikely due to the elevation change and rough terrain. Additionally, the lack of a propper chimney would spell disaster if alcohol fumes built up in the dwelling with an open flame.

The cave’s interior

The twin waterfalls are highly dependent on the amount of recent rain. I visited after a day or so of light rain and got some nice water flow, but it runs even stronger after a good soaking.