author
Abijah Long
d. 1934
A rancher, guano miner, and early Carlsbad Caverns figure, he left behind a firsthand account that feels close to campfire storytelling. His work gives readers a plainspoken look at the people, risks, and hard labor behind one of New Mexico’s most famous natural wonders.
1 Audiobook
About the author
Born in Texas in 1869 and dead in 1934, Abijah Long is remembered for his connection to the early history of Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. Reliable catalog and memorial records identify him as the author of The Big Cave, the book most closely associated with his name.
That book was published with Joe N. Long and presents Long as the cave’s first owner and an early guano miner at the site later known worldwide as Carlsbad Caverns. The opening family note explains that he had been urged before his death to write down the story of his early life and his experiences with the cave, giving the work the feel of a firsthand memoir shaped by family preservation.
Because so little biographical material about him is widely documented online, the safest picture is also the clearest one: Long was not a famous literary figure in the usual sense, but a firsthand witness to an important piece of regional history. Readers come to him less for polished style than for direct testimony from someone who lived the story.