The town is located within the agricultural Peel region of the Netherlands where peat extraction has been practiced since the Middle Ages.

[3] America was founded in the late 19th century on the Venlo–Eindhoven railway to serve peat extraction in the area by providing transportation for workers and resources.

Other villages with similar foreign names in the Peel region, including California and Siberia, were founded in the same era.

The railway station closed in 1938 and the town was captured by the Germans during World War II before being liberated by the British on 22 November 1944.

In recent years, as peat extraction has declined surrounding America, reclaimed peatlands have been converted as holiday villages and bungalow resorts including Limburgse Peel and Het Meerdal, both operated by Center Parcs Europe.