It was opened in 1880 by London, Brighton and South Coast Railway on the line extension from Hailsham to Eridge.

In 1898 and 1899, Charles Dawson gave several demonstrations with the gas and the railway began to use it to light the station.

Above them at road level (the station approach), the booking office still survives as a shop and café.

As part of the extension to the Cuckoo Trail, the 265-yard (242 m)-long Heathfield tunnel north of the station was restored and reopened in 2002, with a lit footpath running through it and a skateboarding ramp just outside the south portal.

In 2019, Wealden District Council stated: "due to constant vandalism and anti-social behaviour, the tunnel is to remain closed indefinitely with no plans to look into it".