How did Horse Cave get its name?  The short answer is that nobody knows.The theory is that "horse" was used to reflect the large size of the opening to Hidden River Cave, such as the terms "horse fly" or "so hungry I could eat a horse."  There's also a legend that a settler's horse fell into a sinkhole and several days later was found roaming the caverns, hence the name "Horse Cave."  Story also has it that during the late 1700s horse thieves utilized Hidden River Cave, due to its proximity to the railway, as a hideaway for stolen goods.  This site may have been an early horse well, a water well powered by horses.

At one point, the city of Horse Cave was also known as Caverna, which is Spanish for cave.  Although the area had been on maps as Horse Cave since the late 1700s, city leaders opted in 1868 for the Caverna name because it was "more sophisticated".  However, the L&N Railroad was determined to call its downtown station "Horse Cave".  After 11 years of confusion, city leaders in 1879 voted to change the name back to Horse Cave.  Caverna lives on in the name of the consolidated school district and the local hospital.  During this same period in time, the name Hidden River Cave was also adopted to distinguish the cave from the town.