The station, known originally as "Ashton", was opened by the Ashton, Stalybridge and Liverpool Junction Railway (AS&LJR) on 13 April 1846. The AS&LJR was absorbed by the Manchester and Leeds Railway in 1847, which was then renamed the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (LYR). The LYR renamed it "Ashton (Charlestown)" in 1874. The LYR amalgamated with the London and North Western Railway at the start of 1922, and these in turn amalgamated with several other companies on 1 January 1923, to form the London, Midland and Scottish Railway during the 1923 Grouping. It then passed to the London Midland Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948. It was renamed "Ashton-under-Lyne" on 6 May 1968.