Upper Broadway Tunnel c1920

Description:
Eastern portal of the Upper Broadway Tunnel (also known as the Kennedy Tunnel), the first tunnel through the Oakland hills, connecting Oakland and Contra Costa County.

Date of Document:
circa 1920

Document Author:
Unknown

Geographic Location:
Broadway and 51st Street, Oakland, Calif.

Context:
The historical marker located near the former east entrance to the Broadway Tunnel, also known as the Kennedy Tunnel, reads: Opened in 1903, the timber-lined Kennedy Tunnel was the fastest route between Oakland and Lafayette, saving four hours of driving around the San Pablo Reservoir. In 1914, it was wired for lights and renamed the Broadway Tunnel. In 1937, after the completion of the Caldecott Tunnel, the Kennedy Tunnel was closed to motor cars, allowing only foot, horse, and two-wheeled traffic. In 1947, the timber lined tunnel was permanently closed due to repeated cave-ins and rising maintenance costs. It finally succumbed to nature in the late 1960s and the median located at the intersection of Old Tunnel Road and Skyline Drive is the only remnant existing today. The median still holds the original dedication plaque and flagpole."My Grandfather and one of his brothers were two of the original founders of the Oakland Scavenger Company, and when my Father was little they used to keep the horses they used in his backyard in West Oakland and the wagons across the street at his uncle's. On Sundays they would hitch the horses to the wagons and go up the hills and through this tunnel and out to Lafayette to get hay for the horses for the week (an all day job). My Mom who often rode through this tunnel in a car said it looked just like a gold mine and was quite scary. I can only imagine what my Grandfather must have thought in there on a horse and wagon!" (Note by guest on Bay Area Rails website, 5-09-04). Bay Area Rails website (http://bayarearails.com/photogal/displayimage.php?album=8&pid=40#top_display_media)