 The community received its name in 1877 following completion of the Springhill & Parrsboro Railway which ran south to the mining town of Springhill and on to the Bay of Fundy port of Parrsboro.The SP&P changed its name to the Cumberland Railway & Coal Company Ltd. in 1884 and operated under this name through the closure of the coal mines in Springhill in 1958 and the abandonment of the railway line south of Southampton to Parrsboro on June 14, 1958.The railway continued limited services between Southampton, Springhill and Springhill Junction until permission to abandon the remaining line was granted in February, 1962.