Alabaster Caverns

Alabaster Caverns State Park is a 200-acre state park located approximately 4.5 miles south of Freedom in Woodward County, Oklahoma. The park is home to the largest natural gypsum cave in the world open to the public, with the main cavern extending three-quarters of a mile into the formation. The cave measures roughly 60 feet wide and 50 feet high and branches into boulder formations and smaller passages. Several types of alabaster are found at the site, including pink, white, and the exceptionally rare black alabaster, which exists in only three known veins worldwide: one each in Oklahoma, Italy, and China. The black coloration is caused by manganese crystals within the anhydrite, a waterless form of gypsum. The cave walls are lined with selenite crystals, the crystallized form of gypsum, some reaching up to 50 centimeters in thickness. In addition to the show cave, the park maintains four wild caving caves ranging from 550 to 1,600 feet in length, providing adventurous visitors with a more rugged underground experience.