High-Speed Rail Project Uncovers Century-Old Raisin Tunnel

Breitbart ^ | 11-17-14 | Daniel Nussbaum

[smokingfrog]

According to the Fresno Bee, crews were dismantling the old Del Monte plant on G Street when they came across the tunnel, believed to have been built around 1906 by the Pacific Coast Seeded Raisin Co. According to century-old fire insurance maps, the tunnel was most likely used to shuttle raisins back and forth between the two outposts of the factory, across the street from each other.

The tunnel's discovery has also reportedly set off a battle between the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) and Chinatown Revitalization Inc., who want to see the tunnel documented as historically significant.

Chinatown Revitalization board member Kathy Omachi put it this way to the Bee: "There hasn't been a lot of movement for our organization to actually trust the group representing high-speed rail." Omachi added that the CHSRA "is inadequately gauging the effect of construction on important Central Valley historical structures and artifacts."

For its part, the rail authority believes that the while the tunnel is certainly old enough to be included on the list of state and national historic landmarks, it lacks other features necessary for the designation, like distinctive physical characteristics or involvement in historical events.

[smokingfrog]

That's an interesting story.

Rail fans in Dallas have blogged that the old hot-water bottle locomotive is still there, walled-up inside the abandoned tunnels, a relic of the lines’ abandonment.

Dallas Landmark Santa Fe Terminal Complex