During its prime years, the branch hosted the Metropolitan, the Cincinnatian and National Limited, the B&O's premiere passenger train between New York City and St. Louis, Missouri.

[3][failed verification] After the Parkersburg Branch became part of the newly formed Chessie System in 1973, the mountainous route lost favor among railroad management.

[3][failed verification] Beginning in October 1976, another Amtrak train, the Shenandoah, began utilizing the route, only to be discontinued in the fall of 1981 due to low ridership.

Amtrak also rerouted the Capitol Limited over a B&O routing between Pittsburgh and Washington, a train originating in Chicago and continuing service to West Virginia communities east of Clarksburg, effectively bypassing the lightly used Parkersburg Branch.

CSX Transportation initially demanded $1.5 million from prospective buyers for the railroad corridor but eventually sold it to the state of West Virginia for approximately $320,000.