Indigo Tunnel

Indigo Tunnel is an abandoned railroad tunnel in Allegany County, Maryland, located about 1 mile (1.6 km) east of Little Orleans. Built by the Western Maryland Railway (WM) in 1904, Indigo was the company's longest tunnel.[1] It was part of a major WM project to extend its rail system from Hagerstown west to Cumberland. This difficult route followed the Potomac River valley and involved construction of four additional tunnels and 23 bridges. The new rail line opened for traffic in 1906.[2]:44 Trains ran through the tunnel until the rail line was abandoned by the newly formed Chessie System in 1975, in favor of the parallel Baltimore and Ohio railroad line on the opposite side of the Potomac River.[2]:283

Indigo Tunnel
West portal of the Indigo Tunnel.
Overview
LineWest Subdivision
LocationLittle Orleans, Maryland
Coordinates39.639207°N 78.360929°W / 39.639207; -78.360929
StatusAbandoned
SystemWestern Maryland Railway
Operation
Opened1904
Closed1975
OwnerWM
TrafficTrain
CharacterFreight and Passenger
Technical
Length4,350 ft (1,330 m)
No. of tracksSingle
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Highest elevation482.8 ft (147.2 m)
Grade0.24 %
Indigo Tunnel

The tunnel was acquired by the National Park Service in 1980 and became part of Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park.[3] The Park Service has identified bat colonies living in the tunnel and has closed the tunnel to the public in order to protect the colonies.[4]

See also

References
  1. Salamon, Stephen; Hopkins, William E. (1991). The Western Maryland Railway in the Diesel Era. Silver Spring, MD: Old Line Graphics. p. 45. ISBN 1-879314-07-X.
  2. Cook, Roger; Zimmermann, Karl (1992). The Western Maryland Railway: Fireballs and Black Diamonds (2nd ed.). Laurys Station, PA: Garrigues House. p. 44. ISBN 0-9620844-4-1.
  3. National Park Service. Washington, D.C. (1981-07-23). "Western Maryland Railway Right-of-Way, Milepost 126 to Milepost 160 (Abandoned)." National Register of Historic Places Inventory--Nomination Form.
  4. National Park Service. Hagerstown, MD. "Indigo Tunnel Bat Habitat - Installation of Bat Gates, Interim Closure." Accessed 2010-12-19.


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