The station serves a right-of-way first laid down in the 1840s by the Orange and Alexandria Railroad (O&A). The O&A's Springfield station, which stood on or near the site of today's facility, was briefly seized by Confederate troops in 1861, recaptured by Union troops, and raided again the following year. The current structure was built in 1992, one of the VRE's original stations.[2]
The right-of-way passed via successor railroads to its current owner, Norfolk Southern.[2] Additional trackage rights are held by VRE and Amtrak, whose Cardinal and Crescent trains pass through Backlick Road station but do not stop there.[citation needed]
^ abPeniston, Bradley. "Springfield's Rail History". www.vre.org. Virginia Railway Express. Archived from the original on 2022-04-22. Retrieved 2022-04-18.