The building was designed in the Government Architect's Branch of the New South Wales Public Works Department, under the supervision of Colonel Walter Liberty Vernon (1846–1914).

[6] In an early Jenolan Caves guide book, the difficulties posed by the remote location were summed up as follows:[7] "The want of good roads, and the dangers of these perpendicular mountains, also the great want of an accommodation house, mitigated for years against this district becoming a popular place for tourists, or a holiday resort.

[9] In 1887, Wilson erected a two-storey wooden building, catering for 30 visitors, and characterised by deep verandahs around three sides of both levels.

[8] That year, New South Wales Governor Charles Wynn-Carington, 1st Marquess of Lincolnshire, and his wife, rode 45 kilometres (28 mi) on the new Six Foot Track from Katoomba, staying two nights in this early Caves House building.

[7] A new road from Katoomba, via Hartley, offered a more direct route, with travelers alighting at Mount Victoria railway station.

[21] Newspaper articles from 1917 to 1947 describe the popularity of Jenolan Caves House after The Great War,[22] producing meat and vegetables from its own farms nearby.

[23] Australia's youngest recipient of the Victoria Cross medal, Private John Jackson, spent Christmas 1918 there.

[25] During the Spanish Influenza pandemic of 1919, Caves House was closed for several weeks and used as a convalescent home for nurses who had become infected.

Aesthetically, the appearance of Caves House, with its roots in English provincial building practice, is a contrast to the mountainous landscape of the remote Jenolan Valley, its massive limestone arches and craggy cliffs.

As the building is the work of a prominent colonial architect, who was influential in the development of Australian architecture, Caves House attains significance by association.

Historically, Caves House illustrates the considerable human activity and ingenuity necessary to provide accommodation in the early days of Australian tourism, in buildings especially designed for this purpose.

Vernon had to employ innovative methods to address problems posed by a major building project in a remote setting.

Caves House has the research potential to provide archaeological evidence about the early development of New South Wales tourism.