It carries automobile and pedestrian traffic between Downtown Richmond's Jackson Ward and Gilpin Court with the North Side's Chestnut Hill and Highland Park.

At the time of construction, the burial ground appeared on maps as Potter's Field.

[3][4] The second Fifth Street Viaduct was a reinforced concrete bridge built in 1933 to allow for automobile, streetcar, and pedestrian travel between the neighborhoods of Highland Park and Jackson Ward.

[1]: p.13  The 1,185-foot (360 m) bridge consisted of seven double-span rigid frames supported on expansion piers and stiff towers[1]: p.1, 2  and was one of five Richmond bridges built during 1933-34 in a major public works program sponsored by the Richmond Bridge Corporation in conjunction with local authorities[1]: p.2 On December 23, 1933, after several days of preliminary streetcar usage, the Fifth Street Viaduct opened for all forms of travel.

[1]: p.17 On July 17, 1941, at the urging of City Council member John Hirshberg, the Fifth Street Viaduct was officially renamed the Stonewall Jackson Memorial Bridge.