The original Beaver Dam station was built in 1840 and was one of only 10 depots on the line in 1850. It was burned several times during the Civil War. On July 20, 1862 a Federal raid destroyed the depot and captured Colonel John Mosby. The station was rebuilt and then destroyed again on February 29, 1864. Once again the station was rebuilt. In May of 1864, Sheridan was assigned to disrupt Lee’s railroad operations. On May 9, Sheridan’s advance brigade, commanded by Custer, attacked Beaver Dam. The Federal troops burned supplies intended for the Army of Northern Virginia, including nearly all the medical supplies. They also destroyed 29 loaded freight cars, 2 locomotives, and about 1 mile of track.

The advance towards Richmond began the following day, May 9, 1864. Sheridan wanted to demonstrate his command of non-traditional cavalry tactics developed by Jeb Stuart and Nathan Bedford Forrest, but the well-supplied force, armed with breechloading Spencer Carbines and outnumbering the Confederate cavalry 2-to-1, failed to pull off the impressive coup that Sheridan had hoped for in spite of mortally wounding Stuart at the battle of Yellow Tavern.

The effect of this advance was almost immediately felt by the Army of Northern Virginia. Leaving on the Plank Road, then turning south at Telegraph Road, Sheridan stumbled on Lee's advance supply base at Beaver Dam on the evening of May 9. On the Virginia Central Railroad, Beaver Dam seemed as though it would be well-protected, but neither Lee or Stuart expected the Union cavalry to make this kind of advance.

There is significant differences in the Union and Confederate versions of what happened at the Beaver Dam depot, with General George Armstrong Custer claiming he "...destroyed the station, two locomotives, three trains of cars, ninety wagons, from eight to ten miles of railroad and telegraph lines, some two hundred thousand pounds of bacon and other supplies, amounting in all to about a million and a half of rations, and nearly all the medical stores of General Lee's army..." while Confederate guards claim to have set the rations on fire as ordered if a superior Union force appeared. Confederates did not list the medical supplies.

Over the next 16 days Sheridan fought battles at Yellow Tavern, MattaponyChurch, Jones' Bridge, Haxall's, White House Landing and Hanover Court House. Marching in a column reported to be 13 miles long, Sheridan knew Stuart was behind him, hoping to find a way to defeat this massive army. Stuart reasoned that if Sheridan was advancing on Richmond, the garrison at the Confederate capital could hold his advance while Stuart attacked his rear echelons and if Sheridan was just looking to destroy infrastructure, he could try to prevent their return to Union lines.Sheridan's raid brought Stuart close to home, so the Confederate general took some time to visit his wife. Returning to his men, Stuart confided in his assistant that he did not want to survive the war if the South were conquered.

On May 11 Stuart received a report that Sheridan had crossed the South Anna River, putting him less that 20 miles north of Richmond. Advancing around his flank, Stuart decided to concentrate his forces at Yellow Tavern, some 11 miles north of Richmond, in advance of the lead units of Sheridan's column. After a brief skirmish that saw the Confederates drive off some bluecoats, a Union straggler pulled a pistol and shot Stuart. The struggle around Yellow Tavern continued as Stuart was whisked away to Richmond in an ambulance. President Davis visited before the cavalry officer died the next day.

Meanwhile, at Yellow Tavern, Sheridan's advance was slowed by Stuart's men, giving the garrison at Richmond time to prepare additional defenses. General P. G. T. Beauregard, commanding the Richmond defenses had not only Phil Sheridan to worry about, but Ben Butler as well. Sheridan's goal was to cross the James and join up with Butler's force, which he accomplished on May 14. After three days of resupplying, caring for his wounded, and leaving Confederate prisoners, Sheridan began the return to the Army of the Potomac.

One major problem facing Sheridan on the return trip was finding the Army of the Potomac. A second problem was the destruction that he had brought upon the land. With many railroad and pedestrian bridges out of commission, Sheridan's raiders did not have the ability to cross rivers. At one point Sheridan's men were forced to rebuild a bridge they had destroyed the week before, just to return to their lines. On May 24 the Union cavalry returned to the main force, meeting General Meade at Chesterfield Station

In 1866 a brick station was built on the site of the stations destroyed in the Civil War. That station is still standing and is now in the National Register of Historical Places.

The 1937 Side Track Record showed a 496' house track, a 3365' passing siding, and a 522' team track. According to the C&O’s 1950 Industrial Directory, Beaver Dam had a team track with a capacity of 13 cars. For some reason, it also listed the Teman team track under Beaver Dam; that siding had an 8 car capacity. Those sidings served the following industries: the Birchall-Hammer Lumber Co. (sawmill), the A. L. Luckado coal yard, Linwood Marks (pulpwood shipper), the R. S. McDonald lumber yard, and E. C. Terrell (pulpwood shipper). The 1963 track charts showed all of the tracks listed above, but what had been the team track now served a sand loading facility. That facility is still in operation and is served by CSX.