Blue Ridge Tunnel

Blue Ridge Tunnel is a Virginia historical marker in Afton, Nelson County, dedicated 2022.

Nelson County · dedicated 2022 · 215 Afton Depot Lane, Afton

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The Blue Ridge Tunnel, which opened to railroad traffic in 1858, lies beneath Rockfish Gap, where Interstate 64, U.S. Route 250, Skyline Drive, the Blue Ridge Parkway, and the Appalachian Trail converge. The Blue Ridge Railroad Company, overseen by the Virginia Board of Public Works, began preliminary work on the project in 1849 with Claudius Crozet (1789-1864) as chief engineer. Irish laborers and enslaved African Americans built the ellipse-shaped, single-track tunnel using hand tools and black powder. At 4,273 feet, it was the longest railroad tunnel in the U.S. when completed. The need to accommodate larger locomotives led to the tunnel’s replacement in 1944.

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David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

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More markers nearby

Rockfish Gap Meetingunder 1 mi
Flight of Richard C. duPontunder 1 mi
Blue Ridge Parkwayunder 1 mi
Greenwood-Afton Rural Historic Districtunder 1 mi