Montgomery Bell Tunnel | |
Nearest city | White Bluff, Tennessee |
---|---|
Coordinates | 36°8′48.6″N87°7′19.4″W / 36.146833°N 87.122056°W |
Built | 1819 |
MPS | Iron Industry on the Western Highland Rim 1790s-1920s MPS |
NRHP reference No. | 94001188 |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | April 19, 1994 [1] |
Designated NHL | April 19, 1994 [2] |
The Montgomery Bell Tunnel, also known as the Pattison Forge Tunnel, which Bell called "Pattison Forge" (often spelled, incorrectly, "Patterson") after his mother's maiden name, is a historic water diversion tunnel in Harpeth River State Park in Cheatham County, Tennessee. Built in 1819, the 290-foot (88 m) long tunnel is believed to be the first full-size tunnel built in the United States, and is the first used to divert water for industrial purposes. It was designated a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1981, and a National Historic Landmark in 1994. [2] [3]
The Montgomery Bell Tunnel is located in a unit of Harpeth River State Park, north of the town of Kingston Springs, Tennessee. In this area, the Harpeth River undergoes a series of meanders. In one of these, two parts of the river are quite close after a lengthy oxbow, known as the Narrows of the Harpeth. The tunnel runs roughly north-south across this isthmus. It is 290 feet (88 m) in length, and is dug entirely through limestone rock. Neither the tunnel nor its portals are lined in any way. The tunnel's profile shape is that of a rectangle topped by a segmented arch, and it is generally 8 feet (2.4 m) high and 15 feet (4.6 m) wide. The entrance portal is 12 feet (3.7 m) high and 35 feet (11 m) wide and the exit portal is 9.5 feet (2.9 m) high and 16 feet (4.9 m) wide. The tunnel has suffered some damage over the years due to erosive forces. [3]
Montgomery Bell, an entrepreneur from Pennsylvania who was involved in iron foundries in central Tennessee, purchased the land in this area in 1818. Recognizing the potential to apply water power to the process of producing wrought iron, he directed the construction of this tunnel, which facilitates use of a 16-foot (4.9 m) drop in river height for power generation. [3]
The tunnel is the first known example in the United States of a "full-scale" water diversion tunnel. It is also apparently the first "full-scale" tunnel of any type in the United States, its completion predating that of the Auburn Tunnel (1821) in Pennsylvania, whose construction was begun first. The tunnel is the only feature of Bell's iron works to survive; not surviving are a dam, head race, and the iron foundry itself, as well as Bell's house, which was built nearby. [3]
During the 1930s, the land in this area was leased to the Boy Scouts of America for use as a summer camp. It was deeded to the state in 1978. [3]
In the late evening, on September 2, 2011, a fire was lit in the tunnel. The amount of driftwood from 2010's flood in the tunnel enlarged the fire. The fire was eventually extinguished in the early hours of the morning. The tunnel, and the road passing over it, were damaged. It and the road were stabilized, however, and Montgomery Bell Tunnel is again safe.
Dickson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 54,315. Its county seat is Charlotte. Dickson County is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN Metropolitan Statistical Area. Dickson County is home to Tennessee's oldest courthouse in continuous use, built in 1835. This is the second courthouse in Charlotte as the first one, a log building, was destroyed in the Tornado of 1833, which destroyed all but one building on the courthouse square.
Cheatham County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 41,072. Its county seat is Ashland City. Cheatham County is located in Middle Tennessee, and is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Ashland City is a town and the county seat of Cheatham County, Tennessee. Located in Middle Tennessee, it is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, the town's population was 5,193.
The Harpeth River, 115 miles (185 km) long, is one of the major streams of north-central Middle Tennessee, United States, and one of the major tributaries of the Cumberland River. Via the Cumberland and the Ohio Rivers, it is part of the Mississippi River watershed. The lower portion of the Harpeth is designated as a "scenic river" under the Tennessee Scenic Rivers Act.
Harpeth River State Park is a state park in Cheatham and Davidson counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. The park is a linear park that was created to connect several state historic, natural, and archaeological sites along the lower Harpeth River. The park includes an incised meander in the river known as the Narrows of the Harpeth and its associated national historic landmark, the Montgomery Bell Tunnel. The park also includes the Mound Bottom and Mace Bluff archaeological sites, the Newsom's Mill Historic Site, the Gossett Tract State Natural Area, and a section of land at Hidden Lakes.
Folsom Powerhouse State Historic Park is a historical site preserving an 1895 alternating current (AC) hydroelectric power station—one of the first in the United States.
The Thomas Viaduct spans the Patapsco River and Patapsco Valley between Relay, Maryland and Elkridge, Maryland, USA. It was commissioned by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O); built between July 4, 1833, and July 4, 1835; and named for Philip E. Thomas, the company's first president. Some claim it to be the world's oldest multiple arched stone railroad bridge. However, the Sankey Viaduct on the Liverpool and Manchester Railway was opened in 1830, and finally completed in 1833.
The Patterson Viaduct was built by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) as part of its Old Main Line during May to December 1829. The viaduct spanned the Patapsco River at Ilchester, Maryland. It was heavily damaged by a flood in 1868 and subsequently replaced with other structures.
Cumberland Furnace is an unincorporated community in Dickson County, Tennessee, United States. Cumberland Furnace is served by a U.S. Post Office, ZIP Code 37051.
Montgomery Bell was a manufacturing entrepreneur who was crucial to the economic development of early Middle Tennessee. He was known as the "Iron Master of the Harpeth" and the "Iron Master of Middle Tennessee". Today he is remembered mostly for founding Montgomery Bell Academy, one of the largest private non-sectarian all-boys high schools in the United States.
The Marlette Lake Water System was created to provide water for the silver mining boom in Virginia City, Nevada. These structures are now listed as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers, and are also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The listed area included two contributing buildings and 12 contributing structures on 135.4 acres (54.8 ha). It has also been known historically as the Virginia and Gold Hill Water Company Water System.
Cornwall Furnace is located near Cedar Bluff, Alabama in Cherokee County. It was built by the Noble Brothers to supply iron products to the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War.
The Colt Armory is a historic factory complex for the manufacture of firearms, created by Samuel Colt. It is located in Hartford, Connecticut along the Connecticut River, and as of 2008 is part of the Coltsville Historic District, named a National Historic Landmark District. It is slated to become part of Coltsville National Historical Park, now undergoing planning by the National Park Service.
Mound Bottom is a prehistoric Native American complex in Cheatham County, Tennessee, located in the Southeastern United States. The complex, which consists of earthen platform and burial mounds, a 7-acre central plaza, and habitation areas, was occupied between approximately 1000 and 1300 AD, during the Mississippian period.
Buffalo Bill Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam on the Shoshone River in the U.S. state of Wyoming. It is named after the famous Wild West figure William "Buffalo Bill" Cody, who founded the nearby town of Cody and owned much of the land now covered by the reservoir formed by its construction. The dam is part of the Shoshone Project, successor to several visionary schemes promoted by Cody to irrigate the Bighorn Basin and turn it from a semi-arid sagebrush-covered plain to productive agricultural land. Known at the time of its construction as Shoshone Dam, it was renamed in 1946 to honor Cody.
Graham Cave is a Native American archeological site near Mineola, Missouri in Montgomery County in the hills above the Loutre River. It is located in the 356 acre Graham Cave State Park. The entrance of the sandstone cave forms a broad arch 120 feet (37 m) wide and 16 feet (5 m) high. Extending about 100 feet (30 m) into the hillside, the cave protects an historically important Pre-Columbian archaeological site from the ancient Dalton and Archaic period dating back to as early as 10,000 years ago.
The Lowell Creek Diversion Tunnel is a flood control project located in Seward, Alaska, United States. The project was constructed to alleviate flooding of Lowell Creek in Seward. It was the first flood control project completed by the United States Army Corps of Engineers in Alaska.
Old Town is an archaeological site in Williamson County, Tennessee near Franklin. The site includes the remnants of a Native American village and mound complex of the Mississippian culture, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) as Old Town Archaeological Site (40WM2).
Montgomery Bell State Park is a Tennessee state park in Burns, Tennessee, United States. The park covers 3,782 acres (1,531 ha) and its official elevation is 758 feet (231 m). However, due to the dissected wooded terrain typical of the Nashville Basin, actual elevations range from 580 feet to 860 feet. The park is open for year-round recreation including boating, hiking, camping, fishing and golf. Montgomery Bell State Park was built during the Great Depression by members of the Works Progress Administration and Civilian Conservation Corps as Montgomery Bell Recreational Demonstration Area. Named for iron industrialist Montgomery Bell, the park is known as the birthplace of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church.
Fort Granger was a Union fort built in 1862 in Franklin, Tennessee, south of Nashville, after their forces occupied the state during the American Civil War. One of several fortifications constructed in the Franklin Battlefield, the fort was used by Union troops to defend their positions in Middle Tennessee against Confederate attackers. The Second Battle of Franklin in 1864, part of the Franklin-Nashville Campaign in the Western Theater, was the most notable engagement of this area during the Civil War.
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