The Montgomery Bell Tunnel, also known as the 'Patterson Forge Tunnel, in Cheatham County, Tennessee, is a 290-foot (88 m) long tunnel through limestone rock which was the first "full-scale" water diversion tunnel built in the United States. It is also apparently the first "full-scale" tunnel of any type in the United States, according to histories of tunneling. It was built in 1819 by Montgomery Bell using the labor of slaves.