The electoral district is named after Mary Colton, who arrived in Adelaide in 1839 and worked for the welfare of women and children.

It was first contested at the 1993 election, where it was won in a large swing to the Liberals by former Adelaide City Council Lord Mayor Steve Condous, recording a 60.5 percent two-party vote from a 9.5 percent two-party swing.

On 2014 election results and a uniform swing, Colton would have been the Liberal's 24th seat to form majority government.

The previous, abolished seat of Henley Beach was also won by the government of the day since its creation at the 1970 election.

Colton/Henley Beach as the bellwether for decades of elections also concurrently decided the result in the one-seat parliamentary majority outcomes of 1975, 1989, 2002 and 2014.