Hidden in Plain Sight

The Greenbrier’s Bunker By Bob Conte

1818 WinterWinter 20102010 n the darkest days of the Cold special purposes. For seven months name — admitted nearly 25,000 War, federal officials pondered immediately after the attack on wounded soldiers, who recuper- the consequences of a devas- Pearl Harbor, the hotel was leased ated on the grounds and utilized tating attack upon Washing- by the U.S. State Department as an the sports facilities as part of the ton, D.C. In the nuclear era such an internment center for enemy alien hospital’s mission as a rehabilita- Iattack would destroy the leadership diplomats. German, Japanese, and tion center. [See “The West Virginia of the government and thereby Italian diplomatic personnel and WWII Home Front: Ashford General destroy the government’s ability their families were housed there Hospital: The Greenbrier Goes to to respond to the crisis. In the face while negotiations continued to War,” by Louis Keefer; Fall 1993.] of this danger, an Ten years after ambitious program the end of the war, was devised that when the govern- entailed the con- ment searched for struction of emer- a partner to serve as gency relocation the location for the centers — bunkers top-secret congres- — where govern- sional bunker, The ment leaders might Greenbrier offered reassemble in a an attractive op- secure location and tion because of this continue to func- successful earlier tion. Underground relationship. shelters were in- In addition, the stalled at Mount C h e s a p e a k e & Weather, Virginia; Ohio Railway line Raven Rock Moun- connected White tain, Pennsylvania; Sulphur Springs di- Cheyenne Moun- rectly to the center tain, Colorado; and of Washington, D.C. e l s e w h e re , e a c h Since the plan called with a separate for moving about purpose. 1,000 individuals The bunker at 240 miles, this rail- The Greenbrier re- ro a d c o n n e c t i o n sort in White Sul- was an important phur Springs was consideration. It intended for the also was benefi- emergency reloca- cial that this same tion of the U.S. Con- railroad, the C&O, gress. There were owned The Green- s e v e r a l re a s o n s brier, helping to why government coordinate trans- leaders turned to portation should The Greenbrier for the need arise. In This 25-ton blast door protects the vehicular entrance used to bring supplies into the assistance in this facility. This became the iconic photograph used in scores of newspapers and magazines the 1950’s there was project. For one, to depict the impressive steel-and-concrete construction of the bunker. Photograph by also a small airport a relationship al- Dan Dry. on the resort prop- ready existed be- erty located one tween the government and The exchange these foreign diplomats mile from the hotel, which offered Greenbrier, forged during World for American diplomats stranded the option of air travel, too. War II when the resort served two overseas. Once the diplomats de- The first official contact between parted, in July 1942, the U.S. Army the government and The Greenbrier The north entrance to The Greenbrier hotel purchased the entire resort property occurred in March 1956, shortly in White Sulphur Springs, Greenbrier County. and converted The Greenbrier into after President Eisenhower hosted One of the nation’s premier destination resorts, this imposing and stately hotel was an unlikely a 2,000-bed hospital. For the next a small but well-publicized confer- location for a top-secret congressional bomb four years, Ashford General Hos- ence at the resort. (The president’s shelter. Photograph by Tyler Evert. pital — the resort’s new wartime golf game with famed pro Sam

Goldenseal 19 Early in the excavation phase of bunker construction, digging down into Copeland’s Hill behind The Greenbrier hotel in January 1959.

Snead generated consider- able copy.) Congressional leaders, including Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson and Speaker of the House Sam Rayburn, arranged a meeting between C&O officials and the Architect of the Capi- tol. From the outset the bunker project at The Greenbrier was super- vised by the Architect of the Capitol, the official in charge of maintaining all buildings in Washington utilized by Congress. This organizational arrange- ment remained in place for the next 39 years, until the

Below: Looking across the top of the nearly completed bunker on October 31, 1960. The large pipe in the foreground was part of the exhaust system to extract smoke from diesel generators inside the bunker’s power plant. The Greenbrier is visible at left.

20 Winter 2010 Read More about It The Greenbrier at White Sulphur Springs, West “Old White,” as it is known informally, was back in Virginia’s premier resort, has a story to tell. That business hosting the well-heeled and elite traveler. tale is given five-star treatment in a book titled, Hard times in the early 21 st century forced a sale The History of The Greenbrier: to new owner Jim Justice, who America’s Resort. Author Bob has recently added a casino and Conte, staff historian at The other attractions. Greenbrier since 1978, knows he Perhaps the most important has one of the choicest jobs in section of the book from a the world, and his enthusiasm historical standpoint is the ex- for his subject is evident in this tensive chapter about “Project attractive 224-page hardbound Greek Island” — the bunker. volume. Originally published in Detailed and insightful, this 1998, the book is now in its sixth is without a doubt the most printing and includes revised authoritative account of the and updated material. inception, construction, main- Conte takes the story of the tenance, and decommissioning famous inn from its roots as a of the bunker available to date. wilderness spring to its devel- The book includes riveting opment as a spa in the pioneer photographs, showing many of and colonial periods, through the luminaries who have visited the opulent 1830’s to the Civil there over the years as well as War, when it was used as a Con- advertisements, programs, and federate hospital and a Union memorabilia. Conte’s text is outpost. Rebuilt following the war, it soon regained clear and engaging, and the layout and presentation its stature as a gathering spot for the wealthy and are exquisite, befitting the book’s elegant subject. famous. The “golden age” of the grand resort came The History of The Greenbrier sells for $29.95, plus with the railroad, and the inn flourished until shipping and in-state sales tax, from West Virginia World War II, when it was converted to military Book Company; on-line at www.wvbookco.com or uses. Following that war, guests returned, and phone 1-888-982-1848. official termination of the project buildings at one time, so that the A parade of trucks hauled 4,000 in 1995. construction of the above-ground loads of concrete, delivering an Construction began on a cold, West Virginia Wing became a plau- estimated 50,000 tons to the site. wintry day in December 1958. As sible explanation for all the activity Once completed, the bunker was soon as equipment began clearing going on only a few hundred yards covered with steel plating and a hill directly behind the existing from the hotel. The underground buried under 20 feet of earth. The hotel, an announcement to the bunker and the new hotel facilities final cost of both the bunker and press explained that the resort was were built simultaneously; thus the the West Virginia Wing was set at embarking on an expansion project overt building disguised the covert just over $14 million. to add a new addition called the building. One was literally stacked The construction phase of the West Virginia Wing. In fact the new on top of the other. This technique project ended in early 1962, when wing was a cover story to hide the came to be called “hiding it in plain the first guests checked into the new construction of the underground sight.” hotel rooms in the West Virginia bunker. For months officials had Building the bunker was a mas- Wing. That wing also included a struggled with a difficult problem. sive undertaking. Its concrete walls large area for The Greenbrier Clinic, The proposed bunker was to be as stand two feet thick and are rein- which had grown significantly since large as a football field — it would forced with steel. Four blast doors its start in 1948 as a diagnostic medi- eventually measure out to 112,000 were specially made by the Mosler cal facility. Most of one floor of the square feet — and the extensive Safe Company. The largest of these building was (and still is) devoted excavation and construction would measures 15 feet high, more than to thorough medical examinations generate many questions amongst 12 feet wide, and 19½ inches thick, by a team of physicians and a staff resort guests and local people. The weighing in excess of 28 tons. Its that does laboratory work as part ingenious solution was to build two hinges alone weigh 1½ tons each. of that diagnostic process. The

Goldenseal 21 West Virginia Wing also included new conference facilities at a time when the resort was pursuing the lucrative area of group business. The new wing was clearly an attempt by The Greenbrier to stay competitive with other resorts, which only made for a more effective cover story. Certainly this whole process generated rumors that there was more to the story of the big construction project on the hill than met the eye. For years people whispered they had heard that some kind of bomb shelter was actually built and that it was One of 18 dormitories inside the bunker that all together held 1,100 beds for members of Congress and their for the president to use in staff. There were separate dormitories for the House and the Senate. For 30 years, every bed was assigned to a case of war. Government specific senator or representative. As membership changed, the beds were reassigned. and Greenbrier officials consistently denied these rumors. More importantly they were able to con- trol access — absolutely no unauthorized person ever actually entered the facility — so that rumors remained unsubstanti- ated speculation. And The Greenbrier itself made an effective cover story. Who would build a bunker at such a lavish and famously expensive resort that was best known for its golf pro, Sam Snead, and its legendary interior decorator, Dorothy Drap- er, and catered to power- ful business leaders and international high-society figures such as the Duke and Duchess of Windsor? For 30 years the congressional emergency relocation center was maintained at a constant state of operational readiness. Selected members of The Greenbrier’s staff, pri- marily in the engineering Hundreds of cases of military C-rations line the 430-foot vehicular tunnel in this 1970’s photograph. Later, freeze- department, underwent dried provisions replaced these rations.

22 Winter 2010 the government’s clear- ance process and signed nondisclosure agreements in order to carry out routine maintenance work. Had war broken out any time during that 30-year period, hundreds of members of Congress and hundreds of their staff would have been quickly transported to The Greenbrier. So it was imperative that the bunker was immediately available and accessible. The bunker contained dormitories with bunk beds, a cafeteria with freezers for food, meeting rooms, of- fices, a medical clinic, and media equipment as well as an extensive communications center. Two small auditoriums were designed to serve as House and Sen- ate chambers, while a large Exhibit Hall could accom- Within the bunker’s extensive communications center was a briefing area — the podium and theatre-style chairs modate joint sessions. At — and conference area. The large photomural of the capitol dome in Washington, D.C., was intended to serve the heart of the operation as a backdrop when congressional leaders filmed announcements to be broadcast to the public. The image was a power plant, where of the capitol would reinforce the message that in the face of crisis the legislative branch of government had diesel generators could sup- reassembled and continued to function. Photograph by Dan Dry. ply electricity. A filtration system was in place to purify air by employees of The Greenbrier but 1962 until 1992. The Greenbrier contaminated by nuclear fallout. also a small group of government functioned as an ideal location not Three 25,000-gallon storage tanks personnel who operated under an- only because the resort seemed such held fresh water from a nearby well, other cover, a consulting company an unlikely place for something as and another three 14,000-gallon called Forsythe Associates. Posing ominous as a bunker but because tanks held fuel oil. as audio-visual consultants, this the large scale of maintaining such In contrast to the five-star hospi- group of about a dozen persons an extensive property also offered tality offered at the resort itself, the actually maintained the bunker’s opportunities to conceal the impor- bunker at The Greenbrier provided sophisticated radio, television, and tation of supplies and equipment. It spartan accommodations at best for telephone systems so that the U.S. is a testament to how pervasive were sequestered members of the U.S. Congress. A large shower room offered wrapped bars of soap but no In contrast to the five-star hospitality offered at the privacy. False windows came with wooden frames and painted coun- resort itself, the bunker at The Greenbrier provided try scenes. A pathological waste spartan accommodations at best for sequestered incinerator was there to dispose of all manner of materials, including members of the U.S. Congress. bodies, while guns, straitjackets, and riot gear were also in place, Congress could stay in touch with the preparations for conflict during if needed. the outside world and also work in the Cold War that something as im- Bringing in new equipment, keep- concert with other elements of the probable as a luxury resort famed ing the food supply fresh, changing government. for its beautiful natural setting, its filters, and upgrading communica- These complex arrangements and impeccable golf courses, fine din- tions were tasks overseen not only procedures remained in effect from ing, and genteel aura of style was

Goldenseal 23 newspaper and magazine articles as well as numerous television programs. Public tours of the facility began in December 1995 and remain one of the most popular ac- tivities at the resort today. Hundreds of thousands of people have gone on guided tours, and even more have seen programs on dozens of cable channels and network programs. The History Channel has pro- duced multiple stories over the years. Although the Cold War slowly fades from memory, the terrorist at- tacks of September 11, 2001, made the American public much more conscious of emergency planning. By the time of that catastrophic event, the relationship This blast door protecting an interior entrance to the bunker was hidden by a moving panel. The huge between the government concrete-and-steel door was located just inches behind one wall of the lavishly decorated foyer leading to the and The Greenbrier had hotel’s Exhibit Hall. Photograph by Tyler Evert. been over for six years. Despite speculation to the in fact an undisclosed but integral disentangled and the equipment contrary, there never was any at- part of the national defense system. inside the bunker was physically tempt to utilize the bunker. It was Between the fall of the Berlin Wall removed and transferred to other no longer a viable option because it in 1989 and the implosion of the government properties. On August was no longer maintained at a state Soviet Union in 1991, the Cold War 1, 1995, the contractual agreement of operational readiness since the came to an end. Was the emergency between the two parties officially contractual relationship had ended. relocation center at The Greenbrier lapsed by mutual consent. The The facility remains today as still necessary in the post-Cold War bunker became property of The tangible evidence of the fear that environment? Could the fortifica- Greenbrier. was always not far below the tions designed to withstand weap- A few months later the once “most surface of daily life during the onry of the late 1950’s hold up to secret place in America” opened Cold War and the realization that the high-tech nuclear arsenal of the to the press and public, causing a only extraordinary means would 1990’s? Did “Project Greek Island,” sensation recorded in hundreds of ensure survival. As dire as those as the bunker was known in code, circumstances might have been, still have a useful role? Apparently The Greenbrier stood prepared to there were those in the govern- The facility remains come to the nation’s aid in service ment who thought not, because the to the government’s leadership at bunker’s existence was leaked to today as tangible a time of utmost crisis. a reporter for the Washington Post, evidence of the fear that BOB CONTE is a native of San Jose, Califor- and a lengthy article appeared in the nia, and a graduate of Santa Clara Univer- May 31, 1992, Sunday magazine that was always not far below sity. He holds a Ph.D. in American studies described the facility in such detail the surface of daily life from Case Western Reserve University in that it could no longer be denied. Cleveland. Dr. Conte worked at the Western during the Cold War and Reserve Historical Society and at the Na- The next day the leadership of tional Archives in Washington, D.C., before the U.S. Congress announced that the realization that only becoming the historian at The Greenbrier it no longer supported the bunker in 1978. Dr. Conte has written numerous operation. Over the next three years, extraordinary means articles, contributed to books and museum exhibits, and is the author of The History of the legal relationship between The would ensure survival. The Greenbrier: America’s Resort. This is his Greenbrier and the government was first contribution to GOLDENSEAL.

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