B&O Parkersburg Branch (13 Tunnels in WV)
B&O Parkersburg Branch Railroad Tunnels (1857-1985) on the North Bend Rail-Trail
Chartered in 1851, the Northwestern Virginia Railroad built 103 miles from the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad mainline at Grafton, West Virginia, to the Ohio River at Parkersburg. The line was sold to the B&O upon completion on May 1, 1857 and became the B&O Parkersburg Branch. Coupled with the opening of the Marietta & Cincinnati Railroad (see Moonville Tunnel) just weeks prior, the B&O completed a connecting rail route from the east coast to St. Louis.
The Parkersburg Branch was built to high engineering standards with 23 tunnels and 52 bridges to minimize curvature and offer a maximum grade of 1.5%. The tunnels, all but one of which appeared in a 60-mile segment between Clarksburg and Parkersburg, required limited change in their first century of service. The easternmost tunnel (#1) was replaced with a parallel double-track bore, four short tunnels were daylighted into open cuts, and some others were reinforced with new portals and lining. However, by the early 1960s, the clearance requirements of higher piggyback trailers and larger boxcars necessitated more significant change. An extensive tunnel clearance project in 1963 consisted of lowered floors (5 tunnels), raised roofs (4), full tunnel replacement (Tunnel 21 only), realignment/bypass (3), and daylighting (5), ultimately increasing minimum clearance from 14' 2" to 17' 2" and reducing the active tunnel count to 11.
For the next few years the B&O claimed the shortest piggyback freight route between the East and Southwest. However, once Chessie System became the parent of the B&O, C&O, and Western Maryland in 1973, declining traffic and alternative routings led to the abandonment of the Parkersburg Branch in 1985. Track removal and grading for the 72-mile North Bend Rail-Trail from Clarksburg to Parkersburg began in 1989, while CSX operates the remaining track east of Clarksburg (including Tunnel 1).
The 13 remaining tunnels west of Clarksburg are pictured here, while the current states of all 23 original tunnels are listed below. Rail-trail (10 of 23) indicates a tunnel is now part of North Bend Rail Trail. Bypassed (3) indicates a tunnel is standing but the railroad (now trail) was rerouted around in a cut. Daylighted (9) indicates a tunnel was blasted by the railroad and replaced with a cut. All mileposts (MP) indicate distance from Grafton, West Virginia. Tunnel lining and portals are primarily cut stone and brick. In many cases, breached stone was patched with brick, and later fallen brick patched with cinder blocks. All tunnels are lined for their full length, except Tunnel 10 which remains entirely unlined.
Tunnel 1: 2708 ft; MP 19.1; east of Clarksburg; replaced 1952 with parallel 3236-ft double-track Lodgeville Tunnel now active by CSX
Tunnel 2 (Brandy Gap or Flinderation Tunnel): 1086 ft; MP 32.2; east of Bristol; rail-trail
Tunnel 3 (Trough Tunnel): 282 ft; MP 41.8; west of Long Run; bypassed
Tunnel 4 (Sherwood, Buckeye, or Long Run Tnl.): 846 ft; MP 42.4; east of Sherwood; rail-trail
Tunnel 5 (Shannon Tunnel): 359 ft, curved; MP 46.8; west of Smithburg; daylighted
Tunnel 6 (Central Station Tunnel): 2297 ft; MP 50.6; west of West Union; rail-trail
Tunnel 7 (Calhoun's Tunnel): 780 ft, curved; MP 60.7; east of Pennsboro; rail-trail
Tunnel 8 (Cunningham's Tunnel): 588 ft, curved; MP 62.6; west of Pennsboro; rail-trail
Tunnel 9 (Butcher's Tunnel): 855 ft; MP 63.4; west of Pennsboro; daylighted
Tunnel 10 (Patterson's or Dick Bias Tnl.): 377 ft curved; MP 69.2; west of Ellenboro; rail-trail
Tunnel 11 (Teneriffe Tunnel): 176 ft curved; MP 70.3; east of Cornwallis; daylighted
Tunnel 12: 577 ft curved; MP 70.8; east of Cornwallis; rail-trail
Tunnel 13 (Bonds Creek Tunnel): 352 ft curved; MP 71.4; east of Cornwallis; rail-trail
Tunnel 14: 182 ft curved; MP 72.1; west of Cornwallis; daylighted
Tunnel 15: 478 ft curved; MP 72.4; west of Cornwallis; daylighted
Tunnel 16: 220 ft curved; MP 72.7; west of Cornwallis; daylighted
Tunnel 17: 452 ft curved; MP 73.2; east of Cairo; bypassed
Tunnel 18: 963 ft curved; MP 73.7; east of Cairo; daylighted
Tunnel 19 (Silver Run Tunnel): 1376 ft curved; MP 77.3; west of Silver Run; rail-trail
Tunnel 20 (Linn Tunnel): 254 ft curved; MP 80.3; east of Petroleum; daylighted
Tunnel 21 (Eaton Tunnel or Bee Tree Tunnel): 2030 ft; MP 84.8; west of Eaton; roof collapsed 1963 during floor lowering killing 3 workers; west portal accessible; replaced with parallel 1840 ft concrete-lined bore now used by rail-trail
Tunnel 22 (Rodimer's Tunnel): 338 ft; MP 86.1; west of Eaton; bypassed
Tunnel 23 (Farrell's Tunnel): 287 ft curved; MP 92.9; east of Kanawha; daylighted
Note: This text and accompanying photos are the copyright of Christopher Muller and may not be reproduced in whole or in part on any website, message board, or other medium.
Read MoreChartered in 1851, the Northwestern Virginia Railroad built 103 miles from the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad mainline at Grafton, West Virginia, to the Ohio River at Parkersburg. The line was sold to the B&O upon completion on May 1, 1857 and became the B&O Parkersburg Branch. Coupled with the opening of the Marietta & Cincinnati Railroad (see Moonville Tunnel) just weeks prior, the B&O completed a connecting rail route from the east coast to St. Louis.
The Parkersburg Branch was built to high engineering standards with 23 tunnels and 52 bridges to minimize curvature and offer a maximum grade of 1.5%. The tunnels, all but one of which appeared in a 60-mile segment between Clarksburg and Parkersburg, required limited change in their first century of service. The easternmost tunnel (#1) was replaced with a parallel double-track bore, four short tunnels were daylighted into open cuts, and some others were reinforced with new portals and lining. However, by the early 1960s, the clearance requirements of higher piggyback trailers and larger boxcars necessitated more significant change. An extensive tunnel clearance project in 1963 consisted of lowered floors (5 tunnels), raised roofs (4), full tunnel replacement (Tunnel 21 only), realignment/bypass (3), and daylighting (5), ultimately increasing minimum clearance from 14' 2" to 17' 2" and reducing the active tunnel count to 11.
For the next few years the B&O claimed the shortest piggyback freight route between the East and Southwest. However, once Chessie System became the parent of the B&O, C&O, and Western Maryland in 1973, declining traffic and alternative routings led to the abandonment of the Parkersburg Branch in 1985. Track removal and grading for the 72-mile North Bend Rail-Trail from Clarksburg to Parkersburg began in 1989, while CSX operates the remaining track east of Clarksburg (including Tunnel 1).
The 13 remaining tunnels west of Clarksburg are pictured here, while the current states of all 23 original tunnels are listed below. Rail-trail (10 of 23) indicates a tunnel is now part of North Bend Rail Trail. Bypassed (3) indicates a tunnel is standing but the railroad (now trail) was rerouted around in a cut. Daylighted (9) indicates a tunnel was blasted by the railroad and replaced with a cut. All mileposts (MP) indicate distance from Grafton, West Virginia. Tunnel lining and portals are primarily cut stone and brick. In many cases, breached stone was patched with brick, and later fallen brick patched with cinder blocks. All tunnels are lined for their full length, except Tunnel 10 which remains entirely unlined.
Tunnel 1: 2708 ft; MP 19.1; east of Clarksburg; replaced 1952 with parallel 3236-ft double-track Lodgeville Tunnel now active by CSX
Tunnel 2 (Brandy Gap or Flinderation Tunnel): 1086 ft; MP 32.2; east of Bristol; rail-trail
Tunnel 3 (Trough Tunnel): 282 ft; MP 41.8; west of Long Run; bypassed
Tunnel 4 (Sherwood, Buckeye, or Long Run Tnl.): 846 ft; MP 42.4; east of Sherwood; rail-trail
Tunnel 5 (Shannon Tunnel): 359 ft, curved; MP 46.8; west of Smithburg; daylighted
Tunnel 6 (Central Station Tunnel): 2297 ft; MP 50.6; west of West Union; rail-trail
Tunnel 7 (Calhoun's Tunnel): 780 ft, curved; MP 60.7; east of Pennsboro; rail-trail
Tunnel 8 (Cunningham's Tunnel): 588 ft, curved; MP 62.6; west of Pennsboro; rail-trail
Tunnel 9 (Butcher's Tunnel): 855 ft; MP 63.4; west of Pennsboro; daylighted
Tunnel 10 (Patterson's or Dick Bias Tnl.): 377 ft curved; MP 69.2; west of Ellenboro; rail-trail
Tunnel 11 (Teneriffe Tunnel): 176 ft curved; MP 70.3; east of Cornwallis; daylighted
Tunnel 12: 577 ft curved; MP 70.8; east of Cornwallis; rail-trail
Tunnel 13 (Bonds Creek Tunnel): 352 ft curved; MP 71.4; east of Cornwallis; rail-trail
Tunnel 14: 182 ft curved; MP 72.1; west of Cornwallis; daylighted
Tunnel 15: 478 ft curved; MP 72.4; west of Cornwallis; daylighted
Tunnel 16: 220 ft curved; MP 72.7; west of Cornwallis; daylighted
Tunnel 17: 452 ft curved; MP 73.2; east of Cairo; bypassed
Tunnel 18: 963 ft curved; MP 73.7; east of Cairo; daylighted
Tunnel 19 (Silver Run Tunnel): 1376 ft curved; MP 77.3; west of Silver Run; rail-trail
Tunnel 20 (Linn Tunnel): 254 ft curved; MP 80.3; east of Petroleum; daylighted
Tunnel 21 (Eaton Tunnel or Bee Tree Tunnel): 2030 ft; MP 84.8; west of Eaton; roof collapsed 1963 during floor lowering killing 3 workers; west portal accessible; replaced with parallel 1840 ft concrete-lined bore now used by rail-trail
Tunnel 22 (Rodimer's Tunnel): 338 ft; MP 86.1; west of Eaton; bypassed
Tunnel 23 (Farrell's Tunnel): 287 ft curved; MP 92.9; east of Kanawha; daylighted
Note: This text and accompanying photos are the copyright of Christopher Muller and may not be reproduced in whole or in part on any website, message board, or other medium.
