In 1994, rail was removed from this area to maintain the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad, the former GC&C line to Frostburg.
The Potomac Wharf Branch Railroad was an early intermodal experiment to provide easy access for western Maryland coal to the markets of the eastern seaboard.
The original Potomac Wharf Branch bridge was a 203-foot (62 m) deck plate girder structure, with two support pillars in the creek.
The guard locks and the dam were removed as part of the Wills Creek flood control project, built by the Army Corps of Engineers for Cumberland in the 1950s.
From City Junction, where the Wharf Branch crossed Wills Creek, the line proceeded eastward to meet the B&O tracks at the southern end of the B&O viaduct.
The Potomac Wharf Branch was built on more of an upward slope than the GC&C, to meet the B&O tracks at viaduct level.
The cut (passage) provides the "West End" of the B&O with access to the Potomac River Valley, towards Keyser, and Grafton.
The viaduct passes over city streets, Wills Creek, and the WM tracks (ex-GC&C, now used by the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad).
[1]: 73 Some rail and ties remained between the viaduct and the Valley Street Bridge in 1994, and extend as far west as City Junction.
Before crossing Wills Creek to City Junction, a spur of the Wharf Branch serviced the Wellington Glass Plant.