The name of the station is taken from its situation within the Mumps area of Oldham, which itself probably derived from the archaic word "mumper", slang for a beggar.

[3][4] This building was later demolished in the 1990s, and the station facilities were concentrated on the main island platform, which was reached by an underpass.

[1] The station was reached across the dual-carriageway Oldham bypass, a difficult walk from the town centre.

The station closed due to the conversion of the line to Metrolink on 3 October 2009 and, by May 2010, had been completely demolished.

[7] In June 2010, the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive announced that as part of the conversion of the former Oldham loop, it would submit a planning application for a temporary Metrolink terminus at Oldham Mumps, close to the site of the former railway station.

In 2014, Oldham council unveiled plans to redevelop the former station site and abandoned line, with a new retail and housing development called Prince's Gate.