It also contains parts of the Mackenzie Heights enclave, and is the home territory of the Musqueam Indian Band.

The Fraser provided large amounts of hunting and fishing areas for Salish Indians who settled at three locations.

[2] In 1908, the land in the Dunbar area was owned by the Canadian Pacific Railway and was part of the now defunct, Municipality of Point Grey.

Due to West Point Grey's 1922 zoning, by-laws ordered that these early homes be situated on the back of their lots; those that remain stand out as neighbourhood landmarks.

The neighborhood is centered on Dunbar Street while the vicinity of Southlands lies south of Marine Drive in the floodplain of the Fraser River, and the Musqueam Indian Reserve is also encompassed by the region.