The South Eastern Railway opened the station in July 1871 to serve the nearby Croydon racecourse.

However, there were drastic reductions in the train service during World War II, from which the line never really recovered.

The station building, situated over the platforms at street level, was de-staffed from 1993[3] and boarded up.

In 1996 the signal box at Addiscombe burned down and single-line working was introduced, with all trains using the down line; the London-bound platform fell into disuse.

The dismantled platform was donated to the Swanage Heritage Railway and reassembled in 2009 at Herston Halt.