Located at the intersection of Gun Hill and White Plains Roads in the Williamsbridge neighborhood of the Bronx,[3] it is served by the 2 train at all times and by the 5 train during rush hours in the peak direction; limited a.m. rush hour 5 trains from Manhattan also terminate at this station in the northbound direction only.

It opened on March 3, 1917, as part of an extension of the IRT White Plains Road Line from East 177th Street–East Tremont Avenue to East 219th Street–White Plains Road, providing the Bronx communities of Williamsbridge and Wakefield with access to rapid transit service.

Service on the new portion of the line was operated as a four-car shuttle from 177th Street due to the power conditions at the time.

[12] The station's only exit is at a street-level station house at the north side of Gun Hill Road in the median of White Plains Road.

The original station house was one short block north at East 211th Street.