Jenson Railroad Tunnel "KCS - Jenson Tunnel," Bridgehunter.com. 2008.Accessed March 22, 2015. is the first and only railroad tunnel in the present state of Oklahoma. It was constructed through Backbone Mountain during 1885–86, by the Fort Smith & Southern Railway (FSSR).Traci Coston Barnes."Oklahoma's First and Only Railroad Tunnel." Retrieved March 24, 2015. and has remained in service until the present. At the time it was built, the tunnel was located in the Choctaw Nation in Indian Territory. Since Oklahoma became a state in 1907, the tunnel site has been part of Le Flore County, Oklahoma. It is now primarily used by the Canadian Pacific Kansas City, previously the Kansas City Southern Railroad (KCS), and has sometimes been referred to as the KCS - Jenson Tunnel.
History
Jenson Tunnel is located on private property northeast of Rock Island and is the only known railroad tunnel in Oklahoma. It was built by a predecessor of the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway (Frisco) in 1885–86. The tunnel was created through Backbone Mountain in what is now Le Flore County, Oklahoma.
One blogger reported that the tunnel was built on the east side of the Arkansas-Indian Territory border, but that a subsequent realignment of the border put it entirely inside the present state of Oklahoma.
Description
The tunnel is long and has a single track. The deck width is and the clearance above the deck is . Its elevation is above mean sea level. The tunnel has various lengths of lining and arching. of the interior is unlined and has no arching. About at each end are lined with stone and have a brick arch. . The rest of the length () has timber posts and arches.
NRHP listing The tunnel was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on May 13, 1976. Reference number is 76001567.
Notes
References
External links Map Showing Located Line of the Fort Smith Southern Railway, Through Part of Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory, Sugar Loaf County. NARA On-line Public Access. Retrieved April 2, 2015.