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Visit a section of river between Keyser and Spring Gap...
Keyser, W.Va.
Dan's Mountain State Park
Cumberland, Md.
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By Keyser, the Potomac has left the Allegheny Plateau and moved into the second geologically distinct area of its passage, the Ridge and Valley Province. Here, the river begins to take on a different character. Slower moving and wider, the river's navigability increases dramatically. Early European explorers in the 1700s found Shawnee and other Native Americans already using the river as a path for trading. European settlement followed a similar path, first by boat along the river and by path beside it and then by canal boat and railroad car.
Instead of mining, towns along this stretch of river were born from trade. As early as 1749, traders of the Ohio Company established a post at Wills Creek, which joins the Potomac at what is now Cumberland. The town of Keyser took its name from William Keyser, first vice president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and remains an important point in the CSX Railroad system.
The area continued as a major trade and transportation center throughout the 1800s, and transportation opened the way for industry. Cumberland became the dominant industrial town of the area, attracting numerous mills and factories. But by the later part of this century most of that industry had moved to other areas of the country, leaving the town with few jobs and a shrinking population. Today, Cumberland is seeking to capitalize on its past by creating Canal Place and other connections to its past. |
