Southern RR train entering Edwardsville tunnel

[Joe Land]

Photo from Bill Schnaiter collection...Notice the people sitting on the highway guard rail watching the train.
The highway makes a hairpin curve there, and it is a long way down to the tracks.

[Gary Dolzall]

Hi Joe:

That's another photo I took and provided a print to Bill. It's certainly fine to share it. - Gary Dolzall

[Pete Pedigo]

Joe, Gary and all,

Clay Stuckey has just finished a sprial bound book entitled "Railroad Tunnels of Indiana".  It is a pictorial and a followup to Clay's friend Richard Simons's article in the "National Railway Bulletin", Vol 55, No. 5, 1990, pp. 12-23.   Clay has a great sense of humor and I quote "This is a picture article. In other circumstances in the printing world this would be thought of as a coffee table book.  Maybe this will quality as an end table book." 

But I have seen the final copy and it is a 53 page book with locations and facts for each tunnel which includes footnotes for sources.  I can say that I learned a lot I did not know about tunnels in southern Indiana.

As for the Edwardsville Tunnel, it is one of nine tunnels built on the Louisville, New Albany & St. Louis Air Line (Southern), with four still in use.

I will check with him and see if he intends to make copies available.

He has donated one copy to our Archives.

Pete

 

[Joe Land]

This photo brought back a memory of the first time I saw the tracks at the bottom of the hill. I was four or five years old, looking from the car window as we were going down the hill, en route to New Albany. Sort of scary at first, then fascinating. 

[Rick Dreistadt]

Neat photo.  Thanks for sharing.
Rick

[Robert Gibson]

I thought it was called "Duncan tunnel"

[David Longest]

Yes, the Duncan Tunnel was not an easy construction.  Besides the physical difficulties, there were funding problems too.  The Air Line (initially the New Albany & St. Louis, began the project in 1870 and completed the tunnel in 1881.  It is nearly 4,300 feet in length with a grade of 2.9%.  It once had land openings on certain Edwardsville farms properties for smoke to exit when the steam locos were in use.  Any one know of their existence today?

[Rick Dreistadt]

David, just a couple of weeks ago I noticed a chain link fence about 6 ft square on the right side of State Rd 64 just past the Korner Kitchen restaurant.  I have never walked over and looked but I wonder if that might be a vent hole.  I don't see anything else around the fence but weeds.
Rick

[Robert Gibson]

The Southern shops at Princeton installed smoke deflectors on the steam engines because of several tunnels between New Albany and Princeton.  The engines shopped at Princeton were easy to spot because of that.  The Princeton shops closed shortly after the Southern steam went silent in 1953.