The suburb is known for its mix of Edwardian and Interwar architecture character, its beaches and its leafy streets, many of which are lined by London Plane trees.

The earliest inhabitants and traditional owners of the area now covered by the City of Port Phillip were the Yalukit Wilum, one of the five clans of the Boon Wurrung, known as the coastal tribe, and who were members of the Kulin nation.

They inhabited the swampy areas below Emerald Hill and the sandy-ridged ti-tree covered coastline, which extended from St Kilda to Fishermans Bend (Port Melbourne).

The Aboriginal inhabitants knew the St Kilda area as Euro-Yroke a name they used to describe the red-brown sandstone found along the beach.

Yalukit Willam: The river people of Port Phillip, provides an Aboriginal history of the area.

On 17 April 1840, the ship Glen Huntly carrying 157 settlers, arrived in Port Phillip flying the yellow fever flag, indicating disease on board.

Point Ormond was a very important source of seafood as Aboriginal women were visiting there three times per week in the autumn of 1840 to collect shellfish".

However, Aboriginal people, not aware of the establishment of the dangerous camp, made a routine visit to these wetlands to harvest shellfish.

This visit was cited by then Superintendent of the Port Phillip District Charles La Trobe as a reason to expel all Aboriginal camps from Melbourne on 19 April 1840.

Elwood Canal was constructed to connect the lower reaches of Elster Creek with Port Phillip Bay, three hundred metres north of Point Ormond.

In 1869, because of the foul conditions of the Elwood swamp, local residents called on the St Kilda Council to remove the nearby abattoir and night soil depot.

Large period houses, many from the 1920s and 30s with art deco touches, along with proximity to beach and foreshore, have made the area very attractive.

As the scene saw a demise in the early 1980s, many buildings, including Maison de Luxe and Moulin Rouge (which operated out of the 1880s mansion "Pladda" built for Captain A. Currie), were subsequently demolished.

Coloured lorikeets flock to the green corridors of shady trees, a native forest has been planted on the foreshore and the once despised canal area is undergoing rejuvenation as a haven for walkers and cyclists.

ESC now boasts extensive sailing, training and social facilities and the clubrooms are available to the general public for function hire.