An 1857 railroad tunnel on Wheeling's Heritage Trail, said to be haunted by Alois Ulrich — a German immigrant murdered inside the tunnel in 1867 by the hatchet killer Joseph Eisele.
Wheeling Heritage Trail (south of downtown), Wheeling, WV 26003
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Free public access. Tunnel Green is part of the Wheeling Heritage Trail, a paved rail-trail open to walkers and cyclists.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Paved rail-trail through a curved, unlit stone-and-brick tunnel; the interior is dark even in daytime
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1857 · 1857 Hempfield Railroad tunnel · Part of the Wheeling Heritage Trail · Documented scene of the 1867 Alois Ulrich murder by 'Hatchet Slayer' Joseph Eisele
The Hempfield Tunnel was constructed in 1857 by the Hempfield Railroad Company as part of a planned line linking Wheeling to Greensburg, Pennsylvania. The railroad was later acquired by the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. After the line's rail service ended, the corridor was converted into the Wheeling Heritage Trail, and the tunnel — commonly known today as Tunnel Green — became a publicly accessible walking and cycling route just south of downtown Wheeling in Ohio County.
Local histories collected by the Wheeling community outlet Weelunk and by The Intelligencer note that the hill the tunnel passes through is associated with an early Wheeling cemetery, the Peninsula or Mount Wood-area burying ground, portions of which were said to have been disturbed or relocated during nineteenth-century construction. This documented history of disinterment is frequently cited as the origin of the tunnel's reputation and of the 'green slime' folklore tied to its name.
The tunnel is also the documented scene of an 1867 homicide. On June 29, 1867, a German immigrant named Alois Ulrich was murdered inside the tunnel. His killer, Joseph Eisele, had arranged for Ulrich — described in contemporary accounts as a friend and fellow immigrant — to come to Wheeling for work. Ulrich was struck repeatedly about the head and concealed in a culvert near the east mouth of the tunnel. Eisele, who also killed at least two other immigrant men in nearby Parkersburg between June and December 1867, became known as the 'Hatchet Slayer' and the 'Parkersburg Murderer.' He was convicted and, in 1868, became the last person executed by hanging in Wood County, West Virginia.
The tunnel today is curved and unlit; the bend keeps its interior dark even in full daylight, which contributes to its eerie reputation among trail users.
Sources
According to reporting by Weelunk, The Intelligencer, and WBOY, Tunnel Green has a long-standing reputation as one of Wheeling's most haunted spots. Trail walkers report seeing a shadowy figure standing at the far mouth of the tunnel that vanishes as they approach, unexplained sounds, and a feeling of being watched within the dark central curve where outside light cannot reach.
The tunnel's nickname and its 'green slime' folklore are linked in local tradition to the early cemetery on the hill above, with stories claiming that a greenish seepage along the walls is associated with the disturbed graves. More concretely, the tunnel's ghost is most often identified as Alois Ulrich, the German immigrant murdered there on June 29, 1867, by Joseph Eisele. Eisele's life and crimes are independently documented — he is recorded as the last man hanged in Wood County in 1868 — which anchors the legend to a real, verifiable homicide rather than to invented lore.
Hauntbound presents the murder of Alois Ulrich as documented history and the apparition reports as local folklore. Visitors should treat the tunnel as an active public trail, respect the curve's genuine darkness with a flashlight, and approach the story with awareness that it commemorates a real victim of nineteenth-century violence.
Notable Entities
Walk or bike the Wheeling Heritage Trail through Tunnel Green, the 1857 Hempfield Railroad tunnel. Bring a flashlight — the curve in the tunnel keeps the center dark in all light conditions. Local lore points to the 1867 tunnel murder and a green seepage along the walls said to give the spot its name.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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