It serves the small village of Embsay in North Yorkshire, England.

The original station was on the Skipton to Ilkley Line of the Midland Railway and opened on 1 October 1888.

[1] It was later modernised by the London, Midland and Scottish railway (LMS), and eventually closed as part of the Beeching Axe on 22 March 1965.

[1] The station was re-opened by the Yorkshire Dales Railway (Embsay Railway) on 22 February 1981,[1] and has been refurbished to resemble its appearance in the days of the LMS.

A Midland Railway signal box, dating from 1892, and designed to add character to the station, was opened on 6 February 2008.