This abandoned railway line was completed in the 1850s as the Milwaukee and Fon du Lac Air Line; this railroad was a subsidiary of the larger Milwaukee and Superior Rail Road. In 1881, both lines came under the ownership of the Chicago Milwaukee and North Western Railroad, which in turn was purchased by the Chicago and North Western in June, 1883.

The line from West Bend north to its terminus at Fond du Lac was abandoned around 2003, with the tracks being pulled up soon after. The remainder of the line between West Bend and Milwaukee is still in use by the Canadian National in order to serve an agricultural dealer in West Bend.