Orrville was originally founded as a fuel (wood) and water stop on the fledging Ohio and Pennsylvania Railroad, building west from the Pennsylvania border to Ft. Wayne, Indiana. The railroad was merged into the Pittsburgh, Ft Wayne and Western, and then into the Pennsylvania Railroad.

The Orrville Union Station was built by the Pennsylvania Railroad at the junction of the PRR's Pittsburgh Ft. Wayne and Chicago Railroad and the Cleveland Akron and Cleveland Railroad in 1868. It replaced the original depot, located at Main Street, which was destroyed by fire. The junction was a busy transfer point with freight and passengers being transferred between the two railroads. In 1899 the Pennsy bought the C.A. & C. and Orrville became a terminal. The CA&C had terminal with a yard and roundhouse in Orrville.

The depot served passengers for 100 years before the Pennsy (by then merged into the Penn Central RR) stopped passenger service to the city. The station became a maintenance building until the early 1980's when it was no longer needed and was to be demolished. The ORHC moved in and purchased the building, along with the tower across the tracks.

One of the first projects was the removal of temporary office space that was built inside the waiting room. A false ceiling was installed to prevent the soot (built up from over a century of coal heating) from falling on those in the building. It also helps with the heating of the building. The floor in the main waiting room was replaced with a spruce floor. The interior oak doors are from the Orr Theater in Orrville. And the passenger benches are original.

Metal grills (built by Wayne County Career Center students) were placed on the windows, and an iron railing installed along the Conrail mainline.

The roof overhangs were replaced in 1984 to restore the building to it's original appearance, and downspouts replaced.

The former freight office, next to the waiting room, has been restored and contains several cabinets of railroad artifacts on display. The former baggage room on the east side of the building is used for work projects and craft displays. The ticket office off the waiting room has been restored and is used for ticket sales again. The former station manager's office on the north side of the restored depot now houses the Depot Gift Shop.

Many long hours of hard work went into the renovation of the station, and society members continue to maintain the structures. It is the headquarters of the ORHS, serves as it's meeting place, and is open for tours during special events and on request. It has a full gift shop and excursion ticket office.