Clear to partly cloudy. Low 52F. Winds light and variable..
Clear to partly cloudy. Low 52F. Winds light and variable.
The Tunnelton Depot sits along a brick street.
Old photos at the Tunnelton Depot show the trains that once stopped here.
Tunnelton took its name from a railroad tunnel.
Much railroad memorabilia is on display at the depot.
An engineer’s watch is at the depot.
Trains like this once left passengers off at the depot.
The Tunnelton Depot sits along a brick street.
Old photos at the Tunnelton Depot show the trains that once stopped here.
Tunnelton took its name from a railroad tunnel.
Much railroad memorabilia is on display at the depot.
An engineer’s watch is at the depot.
Trains like this once left passengers off at the depot.
TUNNELTON — It was a train tunnel that gave one Preston County town its name.
Tunnelton was named for its location at the eastern end of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad tunnel, otherwise known as the Kingwood Tunnel, or Mammoth Tunnel, that was built in 1854 at Cassady’s Summit. At that time it was the longest tunnel in the world.
In his book, Industrial and Commercial Growth of Tunnelton, West Virginia, W. Scott Garner wrote: “The ground upon which Tunnelton is built was an unbroken forest, still frequented by deer and other wild animals, when the engineers of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad came feeling their way westward in search of a path for the iron horse. After several preliminary surveys had been made, and the present location of the road finally adopted, the brush and trees were cut along the route in the spring and summer of 1849. Work on the grading was begun the following year, and early in 1852 the first train pulled into Tunnelton.”
According to the Tunnelton Historical Society, Tunnelton has had three train depots. The first caused the editor of a Kingwood newspaper to write, in 1904, a two-page editorial blasting the “eyesore” and calling for something to be done to obliterate it from the area
The second depot, made of red brick, was built in about 1907, and was replaced in 1912 by the current depot. The Tunnelton depot officially closed its doors on May 31, 1968, according to Bob Shaffer, president of the Tunnelton Historical Society.
Shaffer said the Historical Society was formed in 1994 to return the station to its former glory and make it into a railroad museum. He said when the historical society first started it had about 50 members. Now there are eight.
“The depot was the only place left in Tunnelton for tourist on the West Virginia Northern to get off from the rides,” he said. “We thought this might be a good place. The older women would come down and sell candy and cookies to the tourists. That was how we made money for the upkeep of the depot.”
Shaffer was talking about an attempt to bring back the train as a tourist attraction in the early to mid-90’s.
He said the first item donated to the museum was an oil caboose light donated by Dorothy Watkins of Kingwood. Caboose lights are red lights called markers that enable the rear of the train to be seen at night. These lights were originally lit by oil.
Since then other donated items have filled the depot with memorabilia related to the B&O trains that once pulled in to drop off passengers.
On the right as you walk into the station is the chair that was used by Bobby Hunt in the ticket office. Next to it is a cabinet displaying blue and white B&O dishes.
“When it was still in operation, the depot always had a Chicle Treat machine for the kids,” Shaffer said pointing out the gum machine donated in memory of Frances “Leo” Strawser by his wife.
In another display is a framed Passenger Fares Sign from June 1, 1930, stating any day, any train, anywhere two-cents a mile in coaches and three-cents a mile in Pullman.
“You could go to Grafton for a dime,” Shaffer said.
Other displays like a stove that was used to heat the caboose and a kerosene switch heater are a few of the displays that can be seen at the depot.
To look at all the pictures, the display items like the B&O postage stamps, watches, lights, lanterns, plus items related to the coal industry, and watch the video about the B&O is a pleasant learning experience about both the town of Tunnelton and the railroad that gave it its name.
There is no charge to visit the museum. It will be open for tours 1-3 p.m. the third Sunday of August and September. For more information call 304-568-2559, 304-329-2269, 3-4-568-2759 or 304-568-2638.
Anyone interested in joining the Tunnelton Historical Society can attend a meeting, which are held at 6 p. m. the fourth Tuesday of each month at the depot.
Donations can be sent to the Tunnelton Historical Society, P.O. Box 137, Tunnelton, WV 26444.
Staff Writer Jeniffer Graham can be reached at jgraham@prestonnj.com.
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