The station's exact opening date is not certain, but it is known that the station opened between 1909 The station was primarily built to serve the workers of the former
Atlantic Terra Cotta Company factory, from where the station name originated. The
Metropolitan Transportation Authority purchased and gained control of the Staten Island Rapid Transit in 1971, and started to modernize the rail line. The stations on the line were modernized again in the 1990s, with the exception of Atlantic, and the nearby
Nassau station, which also was built to serve a factory. As a result, these two stations were the only visual remains of a time when the SIRT built new platforms in the 1960s during a multi-phase grade elimination project farther north but without adding new canopies or shelters at these stops. Instead, these two stations were set to be replaced with a new
ADA-accessible station in between the two at
Arthur Kill Road. However, the funds required for the construction of the project were not available, pushing back the construction of the project to 2013. Construction on the replacement Arthur Kill station commenced in October 2013, Once the new station opened, Atlantic closed and demolition followed in May 2017. ==Station layout==