Seeing the Greenbrier and the Secret Bunker

August 26, 2019

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Mummy and Daddy took another fun tour… without us. They also took the tour without Mummy’s purse or even their cell phones… apparently it was all TOP SECRET, so doggies were MOST DEFINITELY NOT ALLOWED… but more on that part later. They went to see “The Greenbrier Hotel,” which is located near White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. Beginning in 1778, a local pioneer woman named Mrs. Anderson, started using the local Native American tradition of “taking the waters” to relieve her chronic rheumatism… and for the first 125 years, this summer resort (which was at that time called White Sulphur Springs) was the place to go for the healing waters, and also to escape the coastal heat. A spring of sulphur water still sits at the center of the resort property and is surrounded by a columned “spring house” which has been the symbol of The Greenbrier for generations. Today the resort sits on 11,000 acres and has 710 guest rooms, 20 restaurants and lounges and 36 retail shops. Twenty-six presidents have stayed here, the last one to have stayed here during a presidency was Dwight D. Eisenhower.

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In 1858, a prominent Baltimore family, the Calwells, developed the property as a resort and started building the large hotel, completing it in 1913. During the Civil War it was almost burned to the ground by enemy armies. Following the war it was repaired and reopened… becoming a place for both Northerners and Southerners to vacation. At this time, the name was changed to, “The Old White,” and it wasn’t until after it was purchased later by the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway that the name was changed to “The Greenbrier,” after the neighboring county. It was also at this time that it became a year-round resort instead of just a summer resort, and golfing became a prominent feature.

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In September 1942, the hotel was commandeered by the US Army for use as a hospital, and the hotel was closed down in order to treat our injured soldiers. The Army paid $3.3 million dollars for the property, that had been valued at $5.4 million dollars. They converted the entire place into a 2,000 bed hospital called Asford General Hospital. It opened in October 1943 and treated nearly 25,000 patients before closing in June 1946. The Army then sold it back to the railroad company for just under the $3.3 million dollars that they bought it for in 1942.

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After getting the hotel back in their possession, the C & O Railroad then hired the renowned interior designer, Dorothy Draper, to redecorate and restore the entire Greenbrier hotel. She used bold colors and modern touches, taking 2 years to complete the work… and the hotel reopened to much fanfare in 1948. The decorations and colors are very colorful with stripes, florals and prints of varying colors, all mixing together within the same room. Mummy said she found it to be a SENSORY OVERLOAD and thought it was hard to really focus on ANYTHING in particular. One piece in itself might be lovely, but then it seemed to CLASH with the piece next to it, or the wallpaper or drapes… but it was certainly worth touring the hotel! In one of the hotel bars there hung a MAGNIFICENT CRYSTAL CHANDELIER, which my parents were told came from the house, “Twelve Oaks” in the movie GONE WITH THE WIND. Some of the crystals were even cut in the shape of OAK LEAVES! There are framed pictures on the wall of Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler, just in case you don’t remember the movie. One of the guys on the tour turned to Mummy and asked, “Where did she say that chandelier came from?” Mummy told him it was from Twelve Oaks… from Gone With the Wind. He just gave her a blank stare. So Mummy said, “You know… THE MOVIE… GONE WITH THE WIND?  It was in that movie. Have you seen GONE WITH THE WIND?” And he said no. Mummy dang near fainted! She said, “OMG, Are you kidding me?” He said no… he didn’t know that movie. Mummy leaned over to Daddy and said his mother obviously didn’t raise him properly… I mean seriously! ??? We are just little doggies and even we have seen that movie AT LEAST 5 times… and as God is my witness, I will never go hungry again! That was our favorite line!!!

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Now… about that TOP SECRET ROOM that I mentioned earlier. In the late 1950’s, the US government approached The Greenbrier and asked for help in creating a SECRET emergency relocation center to house Congress in the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust during the Cold War. It was given the code name, “Project Greek Island.” They hid this building at the same time that they were building the “West Virginia Wing,” over which this SECRET BUNKER is built. It took them 3 years, from 1959-1962 to complete the job. It is the size of two football fields stacked on top of each other, for a total of 112,544 square feet. There are 153 different rooms and only 3 entrances, each one protected by a large steel and concrete door designed to withstand a modest nuclear blast approximately 15-30 miles away, and they prevent nuclear fallout from entering the bunker when they are sealed off. The West tunnel entrance blast door weighs about 25 tons and is 12-feet wide, 10-feet high and 18-inches thick. The two hinges are each 4-feet long, 14-inches wide and 8-inches thick! As they would enter the Bunker, each person would be required to strip down nekkid and enter a decontamination area. Their clothing would be tossed down a chute and burned in case it had any nuclear dust attached to it. They would then enter a shower area where cold forceful jets of water would spray their entire bodies, washing off any contaminants they might have on them… then they would proceed to the next station where they were issued new clothing before entering the main part of the facility. Most of the members would be housed in one of the 18 dormitory-like rooms, with bunk beds lining the walls, and given their own locker. Each dormitory could sleep 60 people, with bathroom facilities and a small lounge set up for each area. Upper-level members of Congress got their own bedrooms. Only the members of Congress and authorized personnel would be allowed to go inside the bunker… their spouses and dependent children would be housed in the “West Virginia Wing,” which WAS NOT underground or anything “safe” like that… but they hoped that westerly winds would “blow the poisoned air away” from them!!! Of course Mummy asked if they would be allowed to bring their PETS with them… the answer was NO! Well, OMG… she said there would be NO WAY she would leave us!!! She said she would DIE FIRST! The Bunker is buried 720 feet into a hillside and surrounded by ceilings and walls that are 3-5 feet thick reinforced concrete. There is then 20-60 feet of dirt between this Bunker and the West Virginia Wing that sits directly over it.

There was a 6,000 square foot clinic with 12 beds, an operating room, an intensive care area, a dental unit and a nurse’s station. Doctors and nurses would have been alerted at the proper time and brought here to fully staff the Bunker!!! The pharmacy was kept FULLY STOCKED with every type medication you can imagine, for 30 years, recycling and restocking  everything as the inventory started to get old, or newer and better medication became available! All of this done in complete SECRECY… just AMAZING!!!

The cafeteria was designed to feed 400 people in one seating, but each meal would require THREE SEATINGS in order to feed everyone inside the Bunker. The kitchen itself covers about 7,500 square feet. You would be assigned a time slot… 1, 2 or 3 so that everyone could be fed. The kitchen was always kept fully stocked with enough food for 60 days… again, this was constantly recycled and restocked as the food products started to age. The food was shuffled down to the Bunker from the kitchen of The Greenbrier Hotel and ordered through the hotel, but despite the huge overages, no one ever caught on that anything weird was going on. Very few people working at The Greenbrier even KNEW that the Bunker was THERE!!!

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Part of the ACTUAL BUNKER was actually disguised as an “Exhibit Hall” and for YEARS was used by the hotel for many conventions and exhibits!!! Thousands and thousands of people came through the “carefully hidden” 18-ton blast door (hidden behind screens and panels with busy wallpaper designs) and never had a clue that they were actually in part of the SECRET UNDERGROUND BUNKER!!!

Anyone who worked on the SECRET BUNKER was made to sign a non-disclosure form swearing to never reveal any information about the TOP SECRET WORK that was being done at The Greenbrier. Even employees there didn’t know the Bunker was being built!  Government employees worked at The Greenbrier as “TV/Maintenance Men” but were really there to keep things going at the SECRET BUNKER.  It was never used, but ALMOST got to be used during the Cuban Missile Crisis!!! It was not discovered until 1992 when Ted Gup published a story in The Washington Post, after a retired member of Congress leaked the information to him. The disgruntled Congress member felt that it was a waste of taxpayer money and had outlived its usefulness because it was too far from The White House, with the use now of long range missiles that leave little time to take cover. Immediately after the story was leaked, the government  decommissioned the SECRET BUNKER. Nothing happened to the journalist for publishing the story, but they surely DID find out who leaked the TOP SECRET LOCATION, and ended up revoking the guy’s pension, rather than sending him to Leavenworth Prison. The Bunker is now leased to a Data Storage Company who has very strict security regarding tours!!! Mummy and Daddy could not take in a cell phone or any type electronic device, no bags, no purses and NO DOGGIES! You are monitored by overhead security devices for the entire tour… it is WORSE than being in a casino… so don’t try anything funny if you go on this tour… just sayin.

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In 2009, the resort filed for bankruptcy, listing debt up to $500 million dollars and assets of $100 million dollars. They said they had suffered from competition from a wide variety of resorts and declining traffic due to people being able to drive to closer vacation destinations rather than take flights. In May of 2009, the Justice family of West Virginia, purchased the resort for only $20 million dollars. The patriarch of the family is the Governor of West Virginia. Today it is a bustling resort with weddings, conferences, political conventions and gatherings of all sorts… as well as being known for their spa, golf courses and casino. The resort offers NUMEROUS activities to keep you busy if you should decide to stay here, and the local area is full of tiny towns that are brimming with character. The Greenbrier is a place you definitely want to put on your list of things to see when traveling through beautiful West Virginia. ?❤️?