SEARCHERS - Exploring a Forgotten Tunnel in Brownsville

[@cattinamarie6545]

Very cool! I love Brownsville! Redstone Cemetery is one of my favorite places to visit. Thank you. :)

[@crashstreetkid2066]

My grandparents took us to Bowman's Castle in the middle 60's while on vacation and relayed the story of the tunnel which they related to the underground railroad and river pirates. Great video.

[@user-dj8yo6nj1n]

There is allegedly an old forgotten tunnel that runs from the Monongahela River in Roscoe, PA, from the banks, underneath PA88 to a house on the other side, which in the basement had a bricked in tunnel entrance that was where the tunnel ended. This was from a friend of mine, a long time ago, who lived in that house and the story they were always told, growing up, of what that bricked in tunnel entrance in the basement was. They were also told a story that pre-Civil War, with the Monogahela flowing north, from below to over the northern side of the Mason-Dixon Line, that there were abolitionists in PA who ran an Underground Railroad, to bring people from the south, up into the north, discreetly, without being caught, to find new lives up in a free, non-slave state. When I saw this tunnel, and you talk about a possible other, it immediately brought to mind the story about the old tunnel that also led from the Monogahela, down in Roscoe, many miles downstream from Brownsville. So could it have been an abolitionist tunnel for the Underground RR, maybe it had that use too, bringing people in, late at night, in the dark, from boats docked discreetly at the riverside, up secret stairs and tunnels until being given help needed in order to start anew in the free state of PA.

[@bettypopielarczyk714]

A lot of your story is right, but there are a lot of stuff that’s missing and didn’t only go those places across the river. It also went to the castle and all to the slave quarters and some of those houses up there as a teenager we went exploring all the time and we could go where we could go and we couldn’t we just check somewhere else out.

[@bettypopielarczyk714]

Dude, as a teenager, we found tunnels. They lead all under the castle through the slave quarters and everything and now you guys are just finding this wow

[@papleb5167]

Oh WWOW. This is awesome!

[@SnapScavenge]

I have been searching for old glass bottles. Found a few in brownsville from the old brownsville brewery and south brownsville bottling works

[@paranormaladventurer4922]

Very cool find here! I didn't know about this. I will have to check it out the next time I go to Brownsville. Also btw at 7:36 you got some kind of EVP. I hear a voice but can't tell what it is saying.

[@GloriaShamsi]

I am a Porter, we were granted a huge land grant from Charles II in return for helping him regain the throne. settled in Redstone Fort area in 1682, Built Hopewelll Church, Laurel Hill Church, and much more. My dad had Porter's Paint and Glass. I remember the last Mrs. Bowman, My dad played in the tunnel on the Bowman's grounds as a child, it came up in the Gazebo and went down to the river bank , used in Underground Railraod and also as bootleggers during Prohibition. LOTS of history . My gr/gr/gr grandfather George Porter was Chief of police, chased 2 robbers over the wooden covered bridge after they robbed Colonial Bank, one shot him in the head point blank, Posse chased them, hung one right in W. Brownsville , then burnt the other alive in the house on the corner where the Orthodox Church now stands. George was taken to Skirpans and HE WOKE UP. Lived another 20 years. His brother Duncan was the tax collector on Union St. Married to Ethel Englisn, whose father was Dr. English. Brownsville was main stop on Stage Coach lines down the Pike and all.

[@bettypopielarczyk714]

Another thing is across the Brownsville Bridge on that hillside Native Americans used to stand on that hill and it used to be able to be seen all of the waters from there. They could see enemies coming and everything else coming if you go over there and dig guarantee you’ll find artifacts.

[@Sk8erpunkboi1900]

I know there was a house there for many many years but didn't know there was a tunnel under the house though. That's really cool though scary but cool

[@wizphotogirl]

Awesome!

[@GloriaShamsi]

Tunnel from REDSTONE FORT first, then when Bowman built the Trading POst and was Post master he built his house and the Gazebo was entry for Undergroud Railroad, then for bootleggers and Porter Whiskey during Prohibition. Whiskey distillery on Water st., before that we dealt with Overholt for brewing in Scottdale (Henry Clay Frick's granddad). Cheaper to ship whiskey by wagon over the mountains to sell and ship also to Europe from Philly, than to ship corn and grain from massive Porter farms then. Originally that tunnel was dug and built by the soldiers in Redstone Fort. It is OLD.

[@bettypopielarczyk714]

We used to party in our teenagers and go through out when you could. It was the tunnels that they moved the slaves around in so they weren’t being seen by other guests from the castle and from the churches and they used to be an old hospital too older than Brownsville hospital.

[@chablismolinaro2623]

Awesome video! 👏🏼👏🏼

[@marial8235]

I wonder if this tunnel was originally used as a magazine for the old Fort. It’s been awhile, but I think it was called Redstone Old Fort. The last I can recall nobody was sure where the old original Fort was exactly located but it was supposed to be somewhere near the Castle. Thus it could have been constructed by (British) military. This would have been before the current structures, but may have been later adapted for use by the Castle’s staff.just a thought…

[@jeff1586er]

I lived at 192 Market St from 1954 to 1963 (the Manse for the Presbyterian Church). There was an entrance over the hill that may have been that tunnel, At 12 or less I opted to not in there. For years it was not possible to go into the Castle area. There is a tree on the side toward Front Street where you could jump up. I carved JS + AK and it was still visible the last time I was there, perhaps 1989.

[@tbo2341]

Thanks for sharing this video you don't know how much I appreciate that I'm Timothy Bowman and been wanting to know where that castle was at I was also told that castle was sold which is disappointed i was told that it was sold because the Bowman's didn't exist no more well I still alive at least the last time I pinched myself along with a bunch of other ones here in Southeast Central Indiana out in Arizona I live in Brownsville Indiana we also been searching for underground tunnel down from where the old school used to be apartment complex now has part of the entrance to the tunnel we just don't know which way to go after that because it's been walled in .

[@chairmanofthebored8684]

We're cousins for sure. My grandma was Margaret Bowman, her family is all from Kentucky. There's Bowmans there, I know this because I've been to Bowman family reunions in Kentucky. Marge's dad John Harrison Bowman grew up in Alabama and the next generations moved south until settling in Jacksonville, FL by the 1950's.

[@GloriaShamsi]

That tunnel predated Brownsville Pa. Built by soldier's at Redstone Fort to unload supplies from the river without the Indians knowing. W. Brownsville was called INDIAN HILL. You are way off on your timeline. My family has known about the tunnel for hundreds of years as we came here in 1682 and helped establish Market St. with Andrew Porter's first Farmer's market, ..ergo 'Market Street'. Look at all the cemetery, Porter's are first and largest tombs in Redstone Cemetery, St. Peter's C, Hopewell Church graves by the church, Laurel Hill Church graves by the church.

[@g.h.5057]

The constitution reminds me of the railroad bridge that crosses over the Brownsville wharf.

[@tjsmith5477]

Who had the equipment in the 1800s to build this?

[@phyllisking8402]

Awesome!