There is a fascinating place in West Virginia at the Greenbrier Resort. It is called The Bunker, a hidden facility built during the Cold War to accommodate both the United States Senate and the House of Representatives. The Bunker was kept in a state of readiness and deep secrecy for over thirty years in preparation for a national emergency. Completely unaware of a gigantic fallout shelter the size of a Walmart right under their feet, wealthy aristocrats and the elite, bankers, industrialists and government advisers gathered to enjoy the amenities of the magnificent resort. Even the builders hired to construct a new wing for the Greenbrier, had no idea of the magnitude of the project.
And I was there last week!
My brother and sister-in-law were visiting and we decided to explore the grand old Greenbrier Resort, have lunch and take the bunker tour. We were not disappointed.
The facility is replete with fabulous amenities like swimming pools, theaters, a bowling alley, horseback riding, clay shooting, ping pong, golf, glamorous meeting rooms, ballrooms, and exquisite décor, and even a Monte Carlo style casino. We didn’t do any of these things, but would you believe I wish I had taken pictures of the bathrooms? The public bathrooms were so luxurious they even had private sinks in each stall!
But hidden in plain sight and buried 720 feet into a hillside under a wing of this gorgeous hotel, is a facility that was built between 1958 and 1961 (during the Eisenhower administration) as a secret home for the United States Congress.
Over thirty years later,in May 1992, the secret bunker was revealed in a published story in The Washington Post.
So, the secret of The Greenbrier Bunker is out!
And that’s why we could take the guided tour.
There are three entrances protected by large steel and concrete doors designed to withstand a nuclear blast and to prevent radioactive fallout. One door weighs about 25 tons and is 12 feet wide, 10 feet high and 18 inches thick. Imagine?
The Bunker has 44 separate locations with 153 rooms for a total of 112,544 square feet on two levels. There is a self-contained power plant that could sustain 1,100 people for up to 40 days.
The kitchen had stockpiled provisions for 60 days. There were 18 dormitories with metal bunk beds and each could accommodate 60 persons. There was a clinic with cutting edge medical equipment and supplies, and a kitchen designed to feed 400 people in one seating.
There is an auditorium that was to be the floor of the House of Representatives and you can still see the metal attachments on the backs of the seats where they could attach microphones for recording the business of the House.
And there is more – lots more!
Our tour was absolutely fascinating even though we were told we were not seeing the entire bunker. A major part of it is now used as a secure data storage facility.
The declassified Bunker at the Greenbrier is a time-traveler’s way to experience American history. Carved deep into the mountainside beneath a grand old hotel is an emergency fallout shelter that was once a top secret U.S. government relocation facility for Congress.
But the Greenbrier Bunker is now open to anyone interested in taking a look behind the hidden doors that now let you in to explore another world and another time.
Information on Bunker Tours:
History Channel Video: The President’s Secret Bunker
Note: The statistical details above were taken from a pamphlet entitled Project Greek Island (an original code name for the bunker) distributed to tour participants by the Greenbrier Resort.
Thank you for posting this! Having grown up in the Cold War era, I would love to take a tour.
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That was very fascinating! Lots of people do stories about well known famous cities, landmarks, etc., but you always find these interesting places that I have never heard of and describe them in such amazing detail. This is a great post Dor!!
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Wow, crazy!
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History Channel video on the President’s Secret Bunker and related media-
http://www.history.com/videos/the-presidents-secret-bunker#the-presidents-secret-bunker
According to the Youtube video, there are underground cities and facilities around the U.S. for the President and his staff and Congress members and other essential persons to secure the President’s safety and ‘continuity of government’.
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Thanks for the heads up on this video. It’s fascinating and I am going to edit my post to include it in related material.
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Who knew? 🙂
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You are my very favorite critic of all time. Glad you liked the post about the bunker. 🙂
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The tour certainly takes you back. Seems like ancient history now but it wasn’t that long ago was it? Thanks for visiting and glad you enjoyed the online bunker tour.
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I had no idea, and in West Virginia, no less. Your story in the secret bunker is fascinating, Dor, but it’s your picture of the Greenbrier that makes me want to go there. What a fabulous-looking resort. I wonder how far a drive it is from Virginia Beach…
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You’re welcome! This is really sobering information, isn’t it?
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That was a very interesting post. 🙂
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Yes, the Greenbrier is an astounding resort. I have never stayed there, but have often taken visitors to just browse since it is only about an hour away from home. We all always oooh and ahhh.
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Thanks Judy! 🙂
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Truly fascinating! Being in politics does have it’s perks. I shudder to think about relaying on politicians to repopulate our Country in the event of a nuclear war… ewww! Thank goodness that never happened. 😉
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LOL! Lori, as always, your “take” on things is unique. You will be pleased to know the Bunker tour guide said families were not included in the protected space of the Bunker. Some of the Congress people complained about that so wives & kids were given a fallout area nearby, but were still not allowed into the inner sanctum. I think they said preservation of the government system was the reasoning for the bunker.
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Fascinating! I would love to see The Bunker sometime. Loved the photos!
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Thanks Lori! 🙂
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