Bonner Tunnel #16.5 - Bonner, MT
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T0SHEA
N 46° 52.315 W 113° 53.712
12T E 279371 N 5195001
This tunnel was built by the Milwaukee Road some time after 1909. It is part of the Milwaukee Road's mainline between Chicago and Seattle.
Waymark Code: WMMV4J
Location: Montana, United States
Date Posted: 11/06/2014
Views: 4
The last spike on this line was driven at Gold Creek, not far south of this tunnel, on May 14, 1909. About 600 to 700 feet in length, the tunnel was added after the completion of the mainline, though we don't know how long after. This was just one of 51 tunnels on the line, along with innumerable bridges along its 2,178 mile length.
Of the 51 tunnels originally on the line, only two are still in use as the Milwaukee Road has been sold off and much of the original Chicago-Seattle line abandoned. The fact that this tunnel was added after completion of the line explains its designation as tunnel #16.5, as tunnel numbers 16 and 17 had already been built when this one came into being. The Milwaukee Road itself is no more, having been dismantled as a result of bankruptcy.
