Deep beneath Paint Creek Mountain in Kanawha County, West Virginia, lies the Memorial Tunnel of WV Turnpike, a 2,802-foot engineering relic with a story far stranger than fiction. The Memorial Tunnel, once a critical link on the West Virginia Turnpike, has lived more lives than a cat—serving as a highway, a fire lab, a terrorist attack simulator, and now, a mushroom farm. Let’s dive into the tunnel’s wild journey.
Chapter 1: The “Miracle” Tunnel (1954–1987)
Construction crews’ broke ground in 1952, blasting through 91,000 cubic yards of rock to create what was then a marvel of modern engineering. When it opened on November 8, 1954, the tunnel was hailed as part of the Turnpike’s “88 miles of miracle.” Costing $5 million (≈$58 million today), it boasted a groundbreaking feature: the first closed-circuit television monitoring system in any U.S. tunnel. For 33 years, it funneled cars beneath the mountain—but progress marched on.
By the 1970s, the Turnpike had expanded to four lanes, creating a notorious bottleneck where traffic squeezed into the tunnel’s two lanes. Congestion peaked during holidays, with tailbacks stretching for miles. Instead of widening the tunnel (deemed too risky), engineers bypassed it entirely. In 1987, a $35 million, 1.72-mile reroute opened, moving 10 million cubic yards of earth and 300,000 tons of coal. On July 7, 1987, the last car passed through, and the tunnel went dark.
Chapter 2: Science in the Dark (1992–1999)
Rather than abandon the tunnel, engineers saw potential. From 1992–1995, the Department of Transportation transformed it into the world’s largest fire lab. Researchers ignited controlled blazes to study smoke behavior, testing jet fans and fire-resistant materials. Their findings revolutionized tunnel safety worldwide:
- Jet fans became standard for ventilation in projects like Boston’s Big Dig and the Channel Tunnel.
- New ceiling materials were developed to withstand extreme heat.
One scientist called it a “one-of-a-kind experiment that saved $20 million” in future design costs.
Chapter 3: America’s Doomsday Simulator (2000–2020)
In 2000, funded by Senator Robert Byrd’s controversial $8 million congressional allocation, the tunnel morphed again—into the Center for National Response (CNR). This top-tier training facility prepared 160,000 first responders for disasters like subway attacks, building collapses, and chemical spills.
Walking into the CNR felt like stepping onto a movie set:
- A replica subway station with 800 feet of track and Boston Green Line cars.
- A “highway hellscape” of crumpled vehicles, including a hazmat truck and a 50-car pileup.
- Rubble fields mimicking collapsed buildings, drug labs, and caves.
Firefighters and soldiers trained in pitch-dark, smoky conditions, navigating obstacles in full hazmat gear. “It does a really good job of putting you in a restricted area where you have scarce conditions,” said South Charleston Fire Chief C.W. Sigman. Despite criticism of redundancy (a similar facility existed in Alabama), trainers insisted the tunnel’s realism was unmatched: “You walk in and say, ‘Oh, this is a building’—but here, it’s real,” noted project manager Mel Wick.
Chapter 4: The Fungi Frontier (2022–Present)
In 2020, the CNR closed, and by 2022, West Virginia’s Adjutant General handed the tunnel to Hernshaw Farms. The reason? Mushrooms. The cool, damp, dark environment—once ideal for simulating terrorist attacks—proves perfect for cultivating shiitakes. Local farmer Ryan Post described the tunnel’s steady 55°F temperature and high humidity as “a goldmine for gourmet fungi”. Today, spores sprout where subway cars once stood.
Why the Memorial Tunnel Matters
This tunnel embodies reinvention. It evolved from transit corridor to research lab to disaster prep hub—and finally, to sustainable agriculture. Each phase solved a new problem: easing traffic, advancing engineering, saving lives, and feeding communities. As one historian noted, “The mountain didn’t change, but we did.”
Next time you drive I-77 past Standard, WV, glance east. Behind those boarded portals lies a monument to American ingenuity—and maybe the finest shiitake in Appalachia.
Bibliography
“Center for National Response.” Wikipedia. Accessed June 2, 2025.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Center_for_National_Response.
“History of Memorial Tunnel.” Abandoned Online. Accessed June 2, 2025.
https://abandonedonline.net/memorial-tunnel/.
“Long-Forgotten Tunnel Revived for Homeland Defense Training.” National Defense Magazine, June 1, 2001. Accessed June 2, 2025.
https://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/articles/2001/6/1/2001june-longforgotten-tunnel-revived-for-homeland-defense-training.
“Memorial Tunnel.” Bridges and Tunnels. Accessed June 2, 2025.
https://bridgestunnels.com/location/memorial-tunnel/.
“Memorial Tunnel.” Wikipedia. Accessed June 2, 2025.
https://translate.google.com/translate?u=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Tunnel&hl=es&sl=en&tl=es&client=srp.
Widner, James. “The Longest Tunnel in West Virginia Has a Truly Fascinating Backstory.” Only In Your State, October 28, 2023. Accessed June 2, 2025.
https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/experiences/west-virginia/longest-tunnel-wv.
As always, thank you for riding with me!
https://youtu.be/WeEyCsPPqNY
Visibility: Partly Cloudy
*GPS Coordinate Data Provided on bottom left corner with date and speed*
Destinations in West Virginia by appearance:
Mabscott
Beckley
Nevill Street – Uptown – Beckley (5:15)
Sprague
Beckley Crossing Plaza – Beckley (15:00)
Cranberry
Prosperity
Mount Hope
Cross Roads Mall – Mount Hope (21:45)
Bradley
US19S(Spur) to I64W/I77N – WV Turnpike (24:00)
Pax Toll Plaza – WV Turnpike (32:00)
Milton Travel Plaza (Closed) – (47:00)
Old Memorial Tunnel – Closed Turnpike Alignment on Left (50:30)
Sharon – Cabin Creek (54:30)
Chelyan Toll Plaza – WV Turnpike (58:00)
Chelyan
Marmet
Charleston (1:09:00)
Kanawha City
Capitol Complex
East End
Downtown
West Side (1:16:00)
South Charleston (1:18:30)
Riverwalk Plaza – South Charleston (1:24:00)
US60/MacCorkle Avenue – South Charleston (1:45:00)
US119/Corridor G – South Charleston (2:00:00)
Alum Creek
Ending: US119/Corridor G – Alum Creek
Listen while you ride: My Spotify Playlists
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5FI2WfzKqFIz5dD0BOA1iw?si=4f12084e12b247ec – Mix
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5IWoDtlir7k6eww0PNVdGh?si=dca253ebf4e94ac1 – Chill
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4TNiUuJHvogwtk7ZxWoOpl?si=d4594c2bf5ff4328 – Upbeat
