Helmstetter's "Horseshoe" Curve remains one of the most favored and photographed sites along the Western Maryland Railway. Named for one of the early families that settled the area, the curve was constructed as part of the 1910-1912 86-mile railway extension from Cumberland, Maryland to Connellsville, Pennsylvania. A cut and fill method was used for construction at the Helmstetter Farm site: a trestle was first erected, tracks were laid, and as the cuts were made the fill was dumped over the side of the trestle. The winding tracks hug the mountainside, weaving in and out to gain elevation up the summit, and the curve's unusual form allowed passengers at both ends of the train to be in view of each other.
