It was intended to serve the anglers on the River Dee, tourists, the 1874 Cambus O'May House hunting lodge and the local population of this rural district and stood 39 3⁄8 miles (63.4 km) from the Aberdeen (Joint) station.

[3] Gunpowder was delivered by train for use at the nearby quarry at Tomnakiesk where pink granite was worked and used as ballast, reached by a siding to the east of the station.

[4][5] This loading dock had been opened by the Aboyne and Braemar Railway prior to the station in conjunction with the ballast quarry but was also used to handle cattle and timber traffic.

[6] The name Cambus O'May comes from the Gaelic and means 'Crook in the Plain' referring to the tight bend in the River Dee near the old station.

[8] The station was built with a timber slat exterior and was embellished with angled ends and ornate roof apex tiles as retained to this day (datum 2019).