Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1907-05-15
ABOUT THE blue RIDGE RAILROAD.
NEARLY 80 PER CENT CT THE GRADING
OVER THE MOUNTAINS COMPLETED.

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Every now and then some mention
is made of the completion of the old
Blue Ridge Railroad across the
mountains into Tennessee, and a close
study of the amount of work already
done toward the building of this road,
which would mean much to this
country, reveals the fact that about
eighty per cent of the actual grading
of the road between Walballa and
Knoxville, Tenn, is completed, and
the remaining twenty per cent repre-
sents about forty miles.
The route of the proposed road
leads through a very mountainous
country. In fact, the road will have
to pass through three tunnels, making
total distance under ground of
more than two miles, before it reaches
the Georgia line. After it crosses
the State line there are other places
where tunnels will be necessary, and
one tunnel alone in Georgia will have
TO be mile and q half long.
The proposed route of the line
leaves the present road at West I'm
ion and goes to the right Of W alfalfa.
The old promoters have constructed
a number of large fills not far from
Walhalla toward Stump House noun
tain.
The first tunnel on the route after
leaving West Union is known as
SaCdle tunnel. This tunnel will be
one-half of a mile long and it is said
that two. thirds of the work on this
tunnel is completed. The next tun-
mel is known as Poplar Gap, which
is one-fourth of a mile long and one
half of this work has been completed.
The largest tunnel before the road
reaches the Georgia line is at Tunnel
Hill. There is little history con-
nected with the digging of this tun-
mel which, will be worth mentioning.
1t was way back in 1852 that the
actual work on the road between
West Union and Knoxville, Tenn,
commenced. The railroad authori-
ties had a big undertaking on their
hands in tunneling Tunnel Hill and
they decided to get the work done by
contract. The contract was let in
1852 to a man by the name of Banks.
Banks lacked labor, 80 he secured five
hundred able-bodied Irishmen and
their families to come from Ireland
especially to dig this tunnel.
These Irishmen came and proved
to be good workmeu, hut after work
ing several months, Banks failed
financially or otherwise and the con-
tract was then let to Humbert &
Hitchcock for completion.
The Irishmen built small town
of their own OH top Of Stump House
mountain, near the mouth of the east
end of the tunnel. A number of the
descendants of the workmen are now
living On and about the mountain.
Humbert tS Hitchcock, like Mr..
Banks, failed after working on the
tunnel for several months, and since
the failure of these gentlemen, very
little, if any, work has been done to-
word the completion of the tunnel, for
it was then that the war between the
States broke out and the project was
deserted.
The promoters of the road, when
the war commenced, had spent large
amounts of money on the road. In
fact, more than million of dollars
must have been spent on the grading
alone.
The tunnel through Tunnel Hill
will have TO be one and quarter
miles long, and of this distance at
least two. thirds has been completed.
The east end of the tunnel is not
more than one hundred yards from
the famous Issaquena Falls, of which
30 much has been written. The work
was commenced at six places at one
time. 1t was started at the east and
west end and then four shafts were