The Stumphouse Tunnel & Irish Immigration in the US
I had very recently heard of the Stumphouse Tunnel and was one again take aback by just how many interesting and historical places were hidden in my own backyard. This Tunnel was a part of the ambitious Blue Ridge Railroad which hoped to connect the coastal port of Charleston to Knoxville via train so that internationally traded goods could more easily reach inland America. It was chartered in the 1850s, but interested traders had looked to Stumphouse Mountain as the place to establish a rail line as early as 1835.
The drive was short but rather scenic. Whitewater road looks down onto South Carolina just above Lake Jocassee and Lake Keowee, and then connects to highway 107 where it twists and winds through the dense Sumter National Forest. Once you make your way to the parking area you’ll immediately be greeted by a large sign that reads “Stumphouse Tunnel” written out of re-purposed railroad spikes. Just in front of the tunnel’s opening is an old train car that lies stagnant, a reminder of what the tunnel was supposed to be.
After climbing aboard the train car and staring into the entrance, I made my way into the abandoned tunnel. Water dripping from the ceiling filled the sides of the antiquated walkway with puddles were teeming with salamanders, and it made the black powder-blown ceiling sparkle where my headlamp illuminated it. I couldn’t go very far into the tunnel due to a brick wall that was put in place (picture right), but I wasn’t done exploring quite yet.
A sliver of light could be seen in the distance, and where there was light there must be an opening. Immediately, I traversed the steep ledges that led to the mountaintop and found a section of fencing that separated me from the hole. A sign posted on the fence read that the park cannot be held responsible for injuries, which to me certainly meant that I was being issued a challenge in how far I was willing to go to see the Stumphouse Tunnel in its entirety. Perhaps with good company and steady rope-work I’ll make my way down into the abyss (pictured left), but getting to look into the tunnel from above felt like a success for the time being.
So, Irish. The highly popularized saying, “No Irish Need Apply,” can very succinctly summarize how difficult it was for Irish immigrants to find work in the 1800s. Many found themselves laying tracks on various railroads across the country, and this was hard work. Some 1,500 men used hand drills, hammer and chisels, and explosive black powder to mine through the hard granite, but even a force of that size could only move about two-hundred feet per month due to how dense and hard the rock was. Various rocks scatter the mountaintop, signifying graves where the workers died. NOTE: There are many local legends as to what happened to the workers. Many involve mass killings by the local government to quell worker riots after funding for the tunnel ran out, but there is no evidence to back this story.
While I’m no ghost hunter, there certainly was something that felt very surreal in that tunnel, and I’ll be going back again for sure.
The info-boards just outside the Stumphouse Tunnel speaks of a black-powder processing mill just beneath Isaqueena Falls, and while they were certainly beautiful, I could not find any traces of the mill. Maybe more investigation is in order.
Afternote: I encourage and implore everyone who reads these articles to get involved in the conversation by sharing their experiences at these same locales, guest-writing about some of their favorite adventures and submitting them to the “Contact Us” page so that I might share them, and sending favorite photos so that we can expand the image board.
Adventure On!
-JGM