Natural Tunnel State Park

Southern rails through the "Eighth Wonder of the World"

Duffield, Va / Nov 2022 / RWH

vsp_logo More than 850 feet long and 10 stories high, Natural Tunnel was naturally carved through a limestone ridge over thousands of years. William Jennings Bryan called it the "Eighth Wonder of the World." Other scenic features include a wide chasm between steep stone walls surrounded by several pinnacles, or "chimneys." You'll also find the Wilderness Road historic area and a chairlift to the tunnel floor.

Virginia State Parks

ntsp_state egyptian atural Tunnel State Park is a Virginia state park, centered on the geological formation known as Natural Tunnel: a massive naturally formed cave large to be used as a railroad tunnel. The cave and surrounding park are located in the Appalachian Mountains in southwest Virginia, near Duffield in Scott County. Measuring up to 200 feet wide and 80 feet high, the tunnel was formed over a million years ago by the dissolving of limestone and dolomite bedrock by groundwater and later a small river. The walls of the tunnel show evidence of prehistoric life, and many fossils have been found in the creek bed and in the tunnel walls. Although Natural Tunnel State Park was created in 1967 and opened to the public in 1971, the Natural Tunnel has been a Virginian tourist attraction for more than a century.

sao_logo The South Atlantic & Ohio railroad constructed tracks through the Natural Tunnel in 1893, with the first train passing through the following year. In 1899 the location was purchased by the Tennessee & Carolina Iron and Steel Company. In the same year, the Virgina & Southwestern Railway purchased the SA&O; the tunnel tracks are a part of its line from Mountain City TN through Bristol to Appalachia. In 1916, the VSR would become part of the growing Southern Railway system, which utilized the tunnel for decades along its branch from Bristol to St. Charles, through Big Stone Gap and Appalachia. Today the tunnel tracks are operated by Norfolk Southern. The railroad has been a major partner with the state in developing the area around the tracks, including sponsoring annual train days for the community. CSX Transportation has trackage rights over the right, with both roads using the line primarily for hauling coal.

Duffield, Va / Nov 2022 / RWH

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1894 Official Guide ad / collection

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1910 Official Guide ad / collection

1930 Official Guide ad / collection

1948 Official Guide ad / collection

Duffield, Va / Nov 2022 / Stan Sitzman

postcard / collection

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Visitor Center

Nov 2022 / RWH

Duffield, Va / Nov 2022 / RWH

Click to see the Natural Tunnel Visitor's Center plotted on a Google Maps page

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Duffield, Va / Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Chair Lift

Duffield, Va / Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Duffield, Va / Nov 2022 / RWH

Duffield, Va / Nov 2022 / RWH

Duffield, Va / Nov 2022 / RWH

Natural Tunnel

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

german atural Tunnel is one of the greatest examples of a particular type of karst formation in the world. In geologie terminology, a natural tunnel is defined as "a cave that is nearly horizontal and that is open at both ends. It may contain a stream. Synonyms include tunnel and tunnel cave." Natural Tunnel is notable in that, besides a stream, a working railroad passes through it, and a road passes over it. The northern and southern approaches to the Tunnel are notable for their sheer cliffs, called amphitheaters; the southern is the most spectacular. Natural Tunnel was operated as a tourist attraction from 1928 to 1967 before becoming a state park.

Tony Scales / Natural Tunnel: Nature's Marvel in Stone

postcard / collection

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / RWH

Nov 2022 / Stan Sitzman

german atural Tunnel formed in strata, predominantly dolostone, of the Knox Group of Cambro-Ordovician age, deposited approximately 500 million years ago. Dissolution was preferentially located along the Glenita Fault, which formed approximately 250 million years ago during the Appalachian Orogeny. The exact time is uncertain, but it likely occurred over the past 750,000 to 1,000,000 years. Natural Tunnel has probably been in its present form for the past 10,000 years. The length of Natural Tunnel is dependent on the points measured. In a straight line from the overhang at the South Portal to the vertical face at the North Portal, the distance is 763 feet. Following the curve of the railroad track from these same points, the distance is 838 feet. If one follows the Stock Creek stream channel, the distance is over 900 feet.

Tony Scales / Natural Tunnel: Nature's Marvel in Stone