The bay was initially known as Smugglers Cove due to its use for the illegal export of sandalwood, shipped from there to evade the Government royalty of £1/10/0 per ton.

[3] In 1851 William Burges, Resident Magistrate at Champion Bay (Geraldton), promoted Drummond Cove as a port because of the availability of water, access to inland towns and stable foreshore.

[5] On 19 February 1852 he married Mary Shaw of Belvoir, Upper Swan and subsequently built a stone and thatch cottage where they lived for a number of years.

In the 1930s, Macedonian families moved into the area and established tomato gardens along the side of Chapman Road In the early 1940s, cray fishermen began arriving for the fishing season.

In 1950, the Upper Chapman Road Board resumed 30 acres of land surrounding the cove from White Peak Station, as a beach camping site.