Bee Rock Tunnel
36°53′47.9″N 82°47′19.9″W / 36.896639°N 82.788861°W Bee Rock Tunnel is a former railroad tunnel that is located in Appalachia, Virginia. It was built in 1891 by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad.[1] The tunnel is now part of the Bee Tunnel-Roaring Branch Trail.[2]
Though known locally as the "world's shortest railroad tunnel", at 47 feet 7 inches (14.50 m) long, it is 1 foot 7 inches (0.48 m) longer than the Westmoreland Tunnel, in Gallatin, Tennessee.[3] Both tunnels, however, are longer than the Backbone Rock Tunnel near Crandull, Tennessee, which at around 20 feet (6.1 m) long, is also known locally as the "world's shortest railroad tunnel."[4][5][6]
References
- ^ Boardman, Fon Wyman, Jr. (1960). Tunnels. New York: Henry Z. Walck, Inc. p. 74.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Southwest Virginia Cultural Heritage Foundation, Abingdon, VA. "Bee Tunnel-Roaring Branch Trail" Archived 2013-08-03 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 2013-05-05.
- ^ Colbert, Judy. Virginia Off the Beaten Path. Globe Pequot, 2011. p. 205.
- ^ United States Forest Service. "Backbone Rock Recreation Area". U.S. Department of Agriculture. Web. Accessed 12/2/2012.
- ^ Warmuth, Donna Akers. Washington County Revisted. Arcadia Publishing, May 7, 2008. pg. 57
- ^ Tennis, Joe (2014). Virginia Rail Trails: Crossing the Commonwealth. The History Press. p. 235. ISBN 9781626196537.
- James, Emma W. (1993). "As We Were: Memories of Appalachia and Her Surrounding Coal Camps. Professional Press.
External links
- 2011 photo of Bee Rock Tunnel - the tunneldiaries.com
- Photo of a train approaching Bee Rock Tunnel - Virginia Tourism Corp.
- Old photo of Bee Rock Tunnel - Historical Society of Southwest Virginia (Rootsweb)