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Although only at Mammoth Cave a few years, from 1847 to 1849, Josiah Mosher Jr., was a significant figure in an important transitional period at the cave. Born in Oneida, New York in 1809 to a respected Revolutionary War soldier, he had moved to Hardin County, Kentucky by 1840 where he ran the inn at Nolin. He became Nolin postmaster in 1842. By 1847, he was installed by Dr. John Croghan as manager of the Mammoth Cave Hotel. In his three seasons there, Mosher used music, balls, and advertising to attract additional visitors to the cave. He also contracted with Croghan for needed repairs to the oldest part of the Hotel and upgrades including the covered walkway connecting cabins to the main building.
Visitors and the Kentucky press described him as intelligent, effective, and affable, and visitation greatly increased during his tenure. His daughter Kate Addell Mosher was born at Mammoth Cave in 1848, and his brother-in-law Dr. Rufus Priest visited he and his wife Henrietta every winter. After Croghan's death in early 1849, Josiah Mosher continued to run the Mammoth Cave Hotel until November and worked with J. R. Underwood to finish contracted repairs and smooth the transition for a new proprietor.
After leaving Mammoth Cave, he helped refit and managed the Nashville Inn. Later he ran a hotel in Augusta, Georgia, where he served in a home guard during the late stages of the Civil War. He continued to live in Augusta until his death in 1884 and is buried there in Westover Memorial Park. Although little known today, Josiah Mosher's professionalization, innovations, and improvements helped set the stage for the remarkable growth and success of Mammoth Cave in the 1850s and beyond.
Joseph C. Douglas