Area 4
Sumner County
Region: Middle Tennessee
Time Zone: Central
The Littlest Tunnel
See the guard rails in the picture? You are actually
crossing over the top of the shortest railroad tunnel in the world! If you
stop on top of the tunnel, you can look down on either side into a deep rock cut
where the trains used to run.
The original rail line was built in the 1880s by the Chesapeake
& Northern (C & N) Railroad from Gallatin,
Tennessee to Scottsville, Kentucky.
In order to get a straight path, the railroad had to dig a deep cut through
solid rock near what is today downtown Westmoreland.
According to legend, the rock cut bisected a farmer's cattle
farm, and he worried that he would have no way to move his cows from one side of
the cut to the other. The C&N Railroad agreed to construct a tunnel
through part of the rock; the tunnel would be just wide enough to move cows
across the top.
The C & N sold the line to the Louisville & Nashville (L & N) in
the early 1900s. The line was abandoned in 1976, and the track was
subsequently pulled up. During its heyday, the line carried oil from
Scottsville, Kentucky south. (Yes, there are a few oil wells in Kentucky!)
The major problem with the line, however, was it had several high trestles, and
the cost to maintain the trestles outweighed the revenue.
The tunnel still stands today, and Tunnel Road runs over the
top. If you stop on top of the tunnel, you can look down into the rock cut
on either side. Even though the railroad and the tracks were dismantled in the 1970s,
the Littlest Tunnel still remains!
There is some talk among the citizens of Westmoreland about
restoring the tunnel and making an easy ground-level access so people can walk
through the tunnel. Until this is completed, however, we recommend only
viewing the tunnel from the top.
Directions
As you are coming from Portland, you will pass milepost 17,
then milepost 18, then the Westmoreland City Limits sign, then milepost 19.
Shortly after milepost 19, you will see a mini storage
facility. Turn right on Sumner.
Take an immediate left onto Tunnel Road.
The tunnel is about 100 yards ahead.
News!
Governor Phil Bredesen presents the Check
Westmoreland Gets $106,040
Grant!
August 24, 2004: Governor Phil Bredesen and Senator Jo Ann Graves announced
today that the state is providing the town of Westmoreland with an enhancement
grant in the amount of $106,040 to assist in the preservation and rehabilitation
of the “Little Tunnel”.
The historic tunnel, which was built in 1886, is located just south of State
Route 52 in Sumner County, about 47 miles northeast of Nashville. It is the
shortest railroad tunnel on the Louisville and Nashville Railroad Company line,
and possibly the shortest tunnel in the United States, measuring 46 feet and six
inches in length.
“The Little Tunnel is a unique part of our state’s history,” said Bredesen.
“Westmoreland’s leaders tell us the tunnel is their most prized and historically
significant possession. I am pleased the state is able to step in and help
preserve this Sumner County landmark.”
Governor Bredesen and Senator Graves made the announcement today in Westmoreland
along with Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioner Gerald Nicely.
Nicely explained that in the 1990’s, Congress set up a grant system designed to
fund activities that would strengthen the cultural, aesthetic and environmental
aspects of the nation’s transportation system. Since that time, many Tennessee
communities have been recipients of those funds totaling in the millions of
dollars.
“Such grant funded activities include historic transportation facilities,
bike and pedestrian trails, landscaping and many other non-traditional
transportation projects,” said Nicely. “The initiative we’re recognizing today
is an excellent example of grant dollars well-spent.”
Nicely said in this case, the tunnel was deteriorating structurally and becoming
unstable due to erosion over time. “Senator Jo Ann Graves and Representative
Mike McDonald really helped secure this important grant needed to improve the
tunnel immediately.”
“The grant money will be used to provide urgently needed erosion control and
drainage improvements, as well as to stabilize the Little Tunnel,” said Senator
Graves. “We also hope to provide an historic marker to be placed just off State
Route 52 designating the tunnel’s 1977 appointment to the National Register of
Historic Places.”
“Westmoreland was a railroad company town in its early history,” said
Representative McDonald. “This helps us preserve a piece of that bygone era.”
Picture of the check
Click to enlarge
This is a picture of the Little Tunnel from the
L&N archives.
L&N's General Electric 70-tonner number 98 rolls along with the local freight on
the Scottsville Branch of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad. The photo
was taken alongside Old 31-E north of Westmoreland. The train is running toward
Westmoreland. Alas, most of the line was abandoned and the rails
were removed. The unique GE engine was sold to Tropicana for switching
orange juice cars in New Jersey. Photo from the L&N archives.
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