From West Virginia (WV) Cyclopedia
Kingwood Tunnel, circa 1852
Kingwood Tunnel, in the vicinity of
Tunnelton, WV, in
Preston County, was the major tunnel on the
Baltimore & Ohio Railroad (http://www.wvrailroads.net/index.php/Baltimore_%26_Ohio_Railroad) (B&O) between Baltimore and
Wheeling. Its construction involved the invention of new tunneling techniques and the use of prefabricated iron arch segments. In 1852, it was the longest tunnel in the United States. In 1911 a new tunnel was bored next to the original tunnel. The old tunnel served the B&O for about a hundred years, but was abandoned and sealed up in the 1950's.
