While heading west to Cedar Bluff State Park for the OK Kids Day event, I finally made time for something I’ve wanted to do for years—tour the Ellinwood Underground.
I arrived early enough to check out the Museum of Ellinwood first, which was a charming little spot focused on the town’s history. Not a ton about the tunnels, though—smart move, since folks are more likely to pay for the full underground tour when they’re still curious. (Pro tip: if you do the underground tour first, your ticket gets you into the museum for free.)
I asked the woman at the museum for a food recommendation. She said the best restaurant, and also the only one, in town is 10-39 Cafe. A cute little diner with a focus on sandwiches, meals, appetizers and burgers. I had the crispy chicken wrap. It was very good and the French fries were perfectly cooked.
The tour started with some history. I was surprised to learn that the tunnels once ran for blocks beneath the town. In the 1970s, the city declared them unsafe and started filling them in or sealing off entrances. But the owner of the Wolf Hotel and adjacent storefronts fought to preserve hers, even taking the case all the way to the Kansas Supreme Court—and winning. Without her, none of this would still be here. Grit and good lawyers go a long way.
There were about 15 of us in the group. We descended a brick stairwell into the underground, which felt like a cross between a basement and a ghost story. Cool, a little damp, and full of the scent of old stone and stories.
The first stop was a tack shop, still filled with saddles and tools exactly as the owner left them—he literally locked the doors one day and walked away. It’s like stepping into a time capsule.
Next up, we followed a passage where coal was once delivered to businesses from above. At some point the city put designs in the manholes creating a cool pattern of light on the path below.
That led us to the old barbershop, which was clearly more social club than salon. Back in the day, barbers doubled as doctors (a horrifying combo), and the description of a turn-of-the-century tonsillectomy nearly made me reconsider my lunch. Then came the bathhouse—lined with old bathtubs and stories. The barber, by the way, also played trumpet in a band. Baths cost 15 cents for fresh water, 5 cents if you didn’t mind leftovers. Yikes.
After that, we headed back above ground and crossed the street to the still-operating Wolf Hotel. We toured the rooms and dining area, where a man once ended his life—leaving a bullet hole in the ceiling above the restaurant table. Not your average hotel decor.
Then it was back downstairs, this time through a kitchen stairwell. We walked along what the guide jokingly called the “boardwalk,” which for now is just cardboard, but will eventually be replaced with cement planks made to look like wood. Along the way, we peered into a couple of old storefronts—sealed for safety, but reportedly active with paranormal vibes. One had once been the city library, where old library cards were found behind the bookshelves and now hang framed on the wall. The tour wrapped in a vintage bar space that looked straight out of Prohibition, though it’s a more recent addition to the underground maze.
This visit was long overdue, and I was so glad I finally made the time. The stories, the sights, and the mix of eerie and educational made it a great roadside detour.
Check out some of our other Road Trips.