Prince Albert II, heir to the princely throne of Monaco, son of Prince Rainier III and Princess Grace (formerly actress Grace Kelly) poses in C&O outfit on a passenger car during his family’s trip aboard Chessie 29. Gifted to him by C&O Railway President Walter J. Tuohy, Prince Albert was reportedly so pleased with the engineer’s costume that he put on the outfit immediately and did not want to take it off. Prince Albert II is the current sovereign prince of Monaco. Prince Rainier III, Grace, Albert, and Caroline visited The Greenbrier in April 1963, traveling on Tuohy's business car Chessie 29 (cspr-11285-1.JPG; May 2, 1963, courtesy of the Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Society, archive # CSPR-11285-1).
Recreation
Secret bunker in W.Va. built to hide Congress in event of nuclear war
4 thoughts on “Secret bunker in W.Va. built to hide Congress in event of nuclear war”
To be honest, the military was remarkably naive about nuclear war back then. If one of today’s strategic nuclear weapons was lobbed at the Greenbrier, no one would survive.
Recently I read “Nuclear War: A Scenario” by Annie Jacobsen. There are many scenarios in which a nuclear war might occur, but due to the “Launch on Warning” strategy that the superpowers seem to have embraced, none of those scenarios ends well. In Jacobsen’s scenario, the following unfolds:
– A North Korean leader launches an intercontinental ballistic missile at the Pentagon.
– Korea launches another ballistic missile from a submarine targeting a nuclear reactor in California.
– The U.S. president has 6 minutes to decide on a response.
– The U.S. president is evacuated from the White House and is pressured to launch intercontinental ballistic missiles at all 82 North Korean targets related to the country’s nuclear and military capabilities.
– U.S. missiles fly over Russia, prompting Russian leaders to assume their country is under attack.
– The Russian and American presidents cannot communicate by phone and exchange missile launches toward each other.
– Within 72 hours, three nuclear-armed countries manage to kill billions of people, while the survivors face starvation on a poisoned land where the sun no longer shines and food ceases to grow.
In most nuclear war game simulations, it would pretty much be all over before most people even grasped what was happening.
Today’s strategic nuclear weapons didn’t exist when the bunker was constructed. As the article states, the location (which was then secret) was an unlikely and inconvenient target for an aircraft borne bomb. They decommissioned the bunker after its location became public knowledge, but do you really think it wasn’t replaced by a more modern structure, designed to withstand today’s weapons?
The article keeps using the word “secret” describing the “hidden” bunker. I lived south of White Sulphur and grew up during the 60’s. Everyone knew about this bunker. It was no secret. We would tell friends and kin people who didn’t live around home that if there was a war the president would be hiding under the Greenbrier Hotel. It was common knowledge.
To be honest, the military was remarkably naive about nuclear war back then. If one of today’s strategic nuclear weapons was lobbed at the Greenbrier, no one would survive.
Recently I read “Nuclear War: A Scenario” by Annie Jacobsen. There are many scenarios in which a nuclear war might occur, but due to the “Launch on Warning” strategy that the superpowers seem to have embraced, none of those scenarios ends well. In Jacobsen’s scenario, the following unfolds:
– A North Korean leader launches an intercontinental ballistic missile at the Pentagon.
– Korea launches another ballistic missile from a submarine targeting a nuclear reactor in California.
– The U.S. president has 6 minutes to decide on a response.
– The U.S. president is evacuated from the White House and is pressured to launch intercontinental ballistic missiles at all 82 North Korean targets related to the country’s nuclear and military capabilities.
– U.S. missiles fly over Russia, prompting Russian leaders to assume their country is under attack.
– The Russian and American presidents cannot communicate by phone and exchange missile launches toward each other.
– Within 72 hours, three nuclear-armed countries manage to kill billions of people, while the survivors face starvation on a poisoned land where the sun no longer shines and food ceases to grow.
In most nuclear war game simulations, it would pretty much be all over before most people even grasped what was happening.
Today’s strategic nuclear weapons didn’t exist when the bunker was constructed. As the article states, the location (which was then secret) was an unlikely and inconvenient target for an aircraft borne bomb. They decommissioned the bunker after its location became public knowledge, but do you really think it wasn’t replaced by a more modern structure, designed to withstand today’s weapons?
Shepherdstown? Fish conservatory
The article keeps using the word “secret” describing the “hidden” bunker. I lived south of White Sulphur and grew up during the 60’s. Everyone knew about this bunker. It was no secret. We would tell friends and kin people who didn’t live around home that if there was a war the president would be hiding under the Greenbrier Hotel. It was common knowledge.