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Image: CowanTunnelMidVentShaftExterior

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Description: The Cowan Tunnel, or Cumberland Mountain Tunnel, is a railroad tunnel near Cowan, Tennessee. This photo is of the the middle vent shaft exterior. Three such shafts were dug during construction of approximately 170 feet from the top of the mountain into the tunnel. The shafts provided ventilation for the workers during construction and a vent port for the smoke and steam from the locomotives during operation. The tunnel was built by the Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad Company and was completed in 1852 with the tracks laid in 1853. The strategically important tunnel, part of the rail linkage between the Midwestern United States and the Southeastern United States, played a vital role during the American Civil War. It was considered a major engineering feat at the time. It is still operational and owned by CSX Railroad. The tunnel was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977
Title: CowanTunnelMidVentShaftExterior
Credit: Own work
Author: Bryanmackinnon
Usage Terms: Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0
License: CC BY-SA 4.0
License Link: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0
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