[6] A former industrial suburb, Collingwood is now considered one of Melbourne's gay villages and houses a number of creative arts businesses.

[8] Collingwood's early development was directly impacted by the boom in Melbourne's population and economy during the Victorian gold rush of the 1850s and 1860s.

This resulted in the construction of a large number of small dwellings, as well as schools, shops and churches to support this new population.

In 1958 residents rallied at Collingwood Town Hall against the Housing Commission of Victoria's slum reclamation projects, which would see demolition orders for 122 of the suburb's homes.

[12] The Collingwood Action Group formed in 2006 to fight the "Banco" development, a large mixed use project on Smith Street.

[13] In 2010, over 2,000 people rallied to save The Tote Hotel, a popular live music venue, which became a potential state election issue.

In recent years, the office sector has grown in Collingwood, with a number of developments in its southern former industrial area, with some major companies locating their headquarters in the suburb.

From its early days large commercial buildings often coexisted with small dwellings, occupied by working-class families and the mixture of industry and community continues to the present time.

For example, Oxford and Cambridge Streets are dominated by imposing red-brick factories and warehouses, formerly occupied by Foy & Gibson, but also feature a number of stone, brick and timber dwellings that date back to the earliest days of the suburb.

[29][30][31] By November 2019, sex on premises venue Club 80 had operated in Collingwood for over twenty years, but was closed in 2020 after the sale of its building.

The private tertiary education provider Collarts is located in the suburb with its main campus on Wellington Street, and specialises in design and creative arts degrees.

More recently older warehouses and factories have been converted into apartments and there has been modern townhouse infill and medium density unit development.

Yorkuprhire Brewery, built in 1880 to the design of James Wood, with its polychrome brick and mansard roof tower, was once Melbourne's tallest building.

The former Collingwood Post Office was built between 1891 and 1892 in the Victorian Mannerist style, to the design of John Marsden and is similar to Rupertswood, with its tall tower.

The suburb is served by the nearby Victoria Park and Collingwood railway stations, located in neighbouring Abbotsford.

[41] Australian author Frank Hardy set the novel Power Without Glory in a fictionalised version of the suburb, named Carringbush.