The “cave” was once a speakeasy during the Great Depression. At first, the Chamberlains turned it into something similar. They took advantage of the fact that Kanab frequently played host to many outsiders due to its popularity as a backdrop for Western films of the day. The cave provided a place for movie stars and film crews to get a cold beer, dance and cool off. It was also a popular watering hole for construction workers who built the nearby Glen Canyon Dam in the 1960s. According to a plaque outside its entrance, the cave itself was even a backdrop for one movie filmed in the area, “The Girl in the Black Stockings” in 1957.

They turned the place into a dance hall by leveling the floor with 150 truckloads of dirt, covering that dirt with 7,000 square feet of concrete, then painting the walls white and building a stage, Brandon Griggs wrote in his book “Utah Curiosities: Quirky Characters, Roadside Oddities and Other Offbeat Stuff.”

Chamberlain also fashioned a bar with colorful inlaid stones that still graces the museum. That bar became the centerpiece for frequent socials and dances hosted at the locale.