The station was originally built to receive goods necessary for the construction of the pavilions for the Exposition Universelle of 1867, and for subsequent World's Fairs in 1878, 1889, 1900 and 1937. The location was chosen as it was then a large piece of land devoid of buildings, facing the Trocadéro and the École Militaire. It was built on the street corner of the Avenue de Suffren and the Quai Branly.