Stalactite of the abundance of limestone caves. The corresponding formation on the floor of the cave is known as a stalagmite. The most common stalactites are speleothems, which occur in limestone caves. They form through deposition of calcium carbonate and other minerals, which is precipitated from mineralized water solutions. Limestone is the chief form of calcium carbonate rock which is dissolved by water that contains carbon dioxide, forming a calcium bicarbonate solution in underground caverns. The chemical formula for this reaction is: This solution travels through the rock until it reaches an edge and if this is on the roof of
Cave of the Mounds air instead of water, the water droplets coming from the "lifeline", which are saturated with dissolved calcium carbonate, deposit solid calcium carbonate, which builds up over time to create speleothems. This is a very gradual process, usually taking 50 to 150 years to form one cubic inch of material, and continues to this day. The area around the Blue Mounds, Dane County, was first settled by Europeans in 1828 by Ebenezer Brigham, a successful lead miner from Massachusetts. He had traveled to Wisconsin to join in the lead rush of the late 1820s. After arriving, he set up operations just