From 1873 to 1883, the building served as the railway station for
Wayne, Pennsylvania. In 1883, the building was moved to its current location in Strafford, which was then called Eagle. The name was changed to Strafford in 1887. The landmark building was constructed in the "
Eastlake" or "Stick" architectural style popular from 1855 to 1877. In 1911 the
Philadelphia and Western Railroad extended their Strafford Branch to the station; this line lasted until 1956. The train station was added to the
National Register of Historic Places in 1984. Beginning in the mid-20th century, multiple sources stated, without providing evidence, that Strafford Station was built for the 1876
Centennial Exposition, variously saying that it was used as the Catalogue Building or Japanese Pavilion. No primary sources have been found to corroborate these claims, and in fact significant documentary and physical evidence suggests otherwise, including the station's architecture being similar in form to other Pennsylvania Railroad passenger stations of the 1870s including
Wynnewood Station on the same line.
The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) restored the station between 1999 and 2002 after damage from a June, 1999 fire. Work included restoring the historic station building as well as the outbound shelter. The station was made accessible-compliant with ramps to the platforms. Mini-high-level platforms will be installed after the Amtrak Keystone Corridor project is complete. ==Station layout==