The station dates from 1848, when the
Furness Railway extended its line from to
Kirkby-in-Furness to nearby
Broughton-in-Furness with the intention of serving local copper mines. It was opened on 1 August 1848 and consisted of an island platform. Two years later, the
Whitehaven and Furness Junction Railway completed its line down the coast from
Whitehaven to join the Furness Railway from Barrow-in-Furness, making Foxfield a junction of some importance in the process. The line from Broughton was extended further northwards to
Coniston by the
Coniston Railway Company on 18 June 1859, although it was not long before the Furness took it over (along with the W&FJR – both companies having been absorbed by the FR by 1865). In 1879 an enlarged station was built, designed by the
Lancaster architects
Paley and Austin and built by the
Barrow contractor William Ormandy. The island platform was widened to , and a new
canopy for passengers was provided. For much of its life the Coniston line was well-used by locals and visitors alike, with the branch passenger service connecting with main line trains at one end of the route and with steamer services on
Coniston Water at the other. However it fell victim to road competition in the late 1950s, passenger services being withdrawn from 6 October 1958, and the line closing completely in 1962. The coast line remains in operation though, with the passenger trains supplemented by a number of freight services running to and from the
nuclear reprocessing plant at
Sellafield, operated by
Direct Rail Services. Though the platform buildings have mostly been demolished, the timber signal box and attached waiting shelter is still in use. The old water tower and main building on the opposite side of the southbound line also still stand. ==Facilities==