A signal box on the North side operated the crossing gates and controlled access to the goods yard and the sidings, which served the collieries and brickworks.

The station was on the North-Eastern Railway line, prefixed by London (LNER) sometime later.

Although a passenger service started a year after the station opened in 1856, the line was developed primarily to carry coal, bricks and tiles. The adjacent colliery had opened in 1839 and a mineral line link to the West Durham Railway at Byers Green was developed, using a standing steam engine and cables to haul the trucks.

The line crossed the River Wear on a 200-ft wooden trestle bridge on its way to Newfield and Byers Green, whence the cargo was hauled by locomotive to the port at Hartlepool. The mineral line continued, bringing coal and bricks from Newfield to the NER line, and it remained in use, serving other collieries after those at Hunwick closed.

Waste from Newfield pit was used to fill in the clay pit at Hunwick Station. This was sent across the trestle bridge until it was demolished in 1962. This stretch of the line is now part of the Brandon to Bishop Auckland footpath. The line originally went on to Durham, Sunderland and South Shields.

Regular passengers at Hunwick included children going to the boys’ and girls’ grammar schools in Bishop Auckland. There is a photo of an excited throng of football fans, believed to be returning from the Bishop Auckland v Willington FA Amateur Cup final at Wembley in 1950.