5 miles northeast of Campbellsville, Kentucky sits a large piece of Kentucky history that many have simply forgotten about.
A 30.4-mile rail line that once ran from Greensburg, Kentucky to Lebanon, Kentucky is where the Spurlington Train Tunnel was created. It took over 7 years to build. Construction began on March 1st, 1867, and concluded on July 1st, 1874.
The tunnel is blue limestone and black flint. It took a labor force of 75 men an entire 24 hours to cut 6 feet into the rock.
The tunnel is 1900ft long with a 100ft shaft in the middle to let the train exhaust release from the tunnel.
Getting to the tunnel itself is no easy task. At the beginning of the approximately 300-yard journey to the tunnel, railroad ties can be seen sinking into the owner's yard.
Shortly after the railroad ties, you pass the "Ten Commandments" on your left. It doesn't exactly give you the warm and fuzzy welcome feeling that you get walking into Grandma's front door.
Next comes the gate, which is made out of actual railroad track steel.
Then comes the hike. 200-300 yards of pure mud, water, and fallen blue limestone.
However, once you actually make it to the tunnel... it's unlike anything you've ever seen before.
This portion of the Louisville & Nashville Lebanon Brach was abandoned in the mid-1980s, over 100 years after the first train traveled through the tunnel.
This piece of Southern Kentucky history is located on private property; so make sure you have permission before traveling to it.
