I had wanted to visit the Sutro Tunnel for quite a while given its historical significance and the engineering marvel that it was… However, the tunnel is on private property and has a caretaker. So, I was quite happy to receive an invitation to visit and film the site.
The “Friends of Sutro Tunnel” group (thesutrotunnel...) are doing good things - preserving what remains at the site and restoring what can be restored. Furthermore, they are making preparations to get the tunnel opened up again, which would be fascinating to see. As I mentioned in the video, there are supposed to be some very interesting things back there...
The story of Adolph Sutro and the Sutro Tunnel project is an interesting one and I would suggest looking at the website above or looking around online for more details, but to quickly summarize: the project was conceived of, and led by, Adolph Sutro, a Prussian immigrant. The idea was that a drainage adit run into the heart of the Comstock Lode in Virginia City would more efficiently drain the mines and also help with ventilation, make transportation easier and offer an alternative exit to miners in case of emergencies. Later, the tunnel was also used to haul out waste rock (for a fee, of course).
Adolph Sutro had been selling tobacco in San Francisco, but left for Virginia City in 1860 after the potential of the Comstock Lode was more fully realized. Construction of the Sutro Tunnel commenced on October 19th, 1869 and water began to flow in 1878 after years of work and many natural and man-made obstacles.
Anticipating the rich ore in the Comstock Lode beginning to play out, however, Sutro had been steadily selling his shares in the project toward the end. He took the proceeds from these share sales and returned to San Francisco, where he, arguably, made an even bigger name for himself as mayor of the city and developer of Sutro Baths, Cliff House and other projects. Sutro died in 1898.
Thank you to the Friends of Sutro Tunnel for having me out to visit and thank you to all of those who are putting the Sutro Tunnel back on the map... Also, some of you may have recognized my buddy, Michael, from Gold Country Explorers (check out his page on Facebook - there is some great material there) with me on this visit. Credit goes to him for connecting me with the Friends of Sutro Tunnel.
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All of these videos are uploaded in HD, so I’d encourage you to adjust your settings to the highest quality if it is not done automatically.
You can see the gear that I use for mine exploring here: bit.ly/2wqcBDD
As well as a small gear update here: bit.ly/2p6Jip6
You can see the full TVR Exploring playlist of abandoned mines here: goo.gl/TEKq9L
Several kind viewers have asked about donating to help cover some of the many expenses associated with exploring these abandoned mines. Inspired by their generosity, I set up a Patreon account. So, if anyone would care to chip in, I’m under TVR Exploring on Patreon.
Thanks for watching!
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Growing up in California’s “Gold Rush Country” made it easy to take all of the history around us for granted. However, abandoned mine sites have a lot working against them - nature, vandals, scrappers and various government agencies… The old prospectors and miners that used to roam our lonely mountains and toil away deep underground are disappearing quickly as well.
These losses finally caught our attention and we felt compelled to make an effort to document as many of the ghost towns and abandoned mines that we could before that colorful niche of our history is gone forever.
So, yes, in short, we are adit addicts… I hope you’ll join us on these adventures!
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3 окт 2024