What Lurks Inside New York’s Oldest Subway Tunnel
Are the rumors true about what's inside New York City's oldest subway tunnel?
From the website, onlyinyourstate.com comes the mind blowing story of New York City's Atlantic Avenue Tunnel, also known as the Cobble Hill Tunnel, which some say is the oldest subway tunnel in the world. Built under the streets in Brooklyn in 1844, the tunnel was used for only a short time until 1861. The tunnel was originally built as part of the main routes between New York and Boston.
By 1861 as NYC's subway system builders began to modernize the underground rail lines, the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel became ineffective and was closed and capped shut. Or was it?
Shoddy workmanship failed to seal the tunnel shut ,and through the decades, scandalous rumors and stories began circulating about what was left, and what actually happened inside the spooky underground rail line.
The tunnel was totally forgotten about until 1981, when a young engineering student named Bob Diamond decided to explore. After intensive research, he recovered the plans to the old tunnel and decided to climb into an old manhole cover at the corner of Atlantic Ave. and Court St. in Brooklyn. He actually had to dig with his own hands to find the top of a brick ceiling. After breaking through the ceiling, a whoosh of cold air rushed out signifying he had found the 'sealed' tunnel. From 1981 until 2010 Diamond led tours inside the old abandoned subway tunnel.
There are many mysterious legends and rumors about the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel which have never been proven either way. In 1916 the story was that German terrorists were making and storing bombs. In 1940, the rumor was that it was a home to spies. For whatever reason, Bob Diamond also believes that the journal of John Wilkes Booth is hidden somewhere down in the catacombs of this mysterious old subway tunnel.