'Never since the building of the glorious Minster centuries ago had so immense and noble a structure reared its head in York' (The Yorkshire Gazette June 1877)

When the new station opened in 1877 it was the largest station in the country and seen by many as 'a monument to extravagance'. By 1910, however, 352 trains per day were running through York and the platforms had grown to be nearly 1700 ft long.

A plaque outside the waiting room tells of the heroic efforts of the station foreman, William Milner, during the Great York Air Raid, which took place in the early hours of 29 April 1942, when the Luftwaffe attempted to cut the vital East Coast Main Line at York. The original tearooms are now occupied by York Model Railway.