Secret Tunnels

As you walk around the front gates of campus, you can feel a hum in the air near Healy Hall that isn't just the old building settling. Washington D.C. is a city built on secrets, and the most deepest ones are underneath our feet. This isn't a conspiracy, it's about infrastructure and how a city riddled with tunnels carrying steam, secrets, and politicians through the bedrock of the capital.

From the stories you hear around Georgetown, there are whispers of a sealed-off fifth floor in Healy Hall, of a Jesuit student who vanished into a dark passage, and of tunnels used for CIA clandestine meetings. While these stories may sound like rumors, they are a very real network of passages.

One of the entrances I found was in Walsh, where there was a dark and decrepit stone staircase leading into a series of tunnels. They were functional passages, filled with hissing and leaky pipes, humid air, and rats. For decades, adventurous students have attempted to seek out these rumored entrances, sometimes finding them unlocked after being left open by maintenance crews.

Inside, the walls show the history of Washington D.C. and Georgetown University, ranging from student rebellions to secret societies. Some groups, like the "Stewards," are frequently tagged in the tunnels. While walking through one passage, I discovered a path connecting Healy Hall, to the Walsh building, and all the way to the base of the Key Bridge. A core truth remains--there is a function underworld existing beneath our feet.

We can't forget about the rumors of tunnels beneath the White House, it's simply a documented fact. The most infamous example is the Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOC), a bunker lying undering the East Wing designed to withstand a nuclear attack. The PEOC was previously used by then-Vice President Dick Cheney and other officials during September 11, 2001. 

There are many, many, many more tunnels, like the ones underneath the U.S. Treasury Building, Oval Office, Capitol Hill, Camp David, and the Pentagon. Don't let anyone change your mind; these are real passages that higher powers want to hide from you.

Last Updated: 11/4/2022 @ 4:23pm EST