The park also includes the former company town of Cass and a portion of the summit of Bald Knob, the highest point on Back Allegheny Mountain.

In 1901 work started on the 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge railroad, which climbs Back Allegheny Mountain.

The railroad built a small town at that location, complete with a company store, houses, a hotel, and a doctor's office.

It was not until several years later that the company realized that the mountain held a fortune in hardwoods, such as maple, cherry, birch and oak.

The railroad eventually extended its track to the top of Bald Knob, the third-highest mountain peak in West Virginia.

In 1963, the first tourist excursion train left the Cass depot for Whittaker Station, 4 miles (6 km) north.

Traveling on 11 miles (18 km) of standard gauge track laid in 1901 by immigrant workers, the line traverses the steep grades of Back Allegheny Mountain.

Under the new arrangement, the Durbin and Greenbrier Valley Railroad (D&GV) will assume day-to-day operations of the line as part of their existing contract with the WVSRA.