The area was originally called and was part of Box Forest, named by Melbourne settler pioneer, John Pascoe Fawkner.

[2] In 1867 John Jukes bought a parcel of land in the area and named it Fawkner in honour of the pioneer settler.

One of the original settlers in Fawkner was Michael Dowling and his family, who settled on their property at Major Road near Merri Creek in September 1902, grazing cattle to fatten for market.

Miss Dowling described the area then as a harsh windy place with few trees and a few unfinished shacks.

The period after World War II saw the most significant period of development in the suburb, with the first public housing built by the Housing Commission in 1949 and continuing up until the 1960s, with the development of the Moomba Park estate, named after the initial Labour Day Moomba Parade held in 1955.

In Fawkner, Christianity was the largest religious group reported overall (49.1%) (this figure excludes not stated responses).

Other languages spoken at home included Italian 13.8%, Urdu 12.4%, Arabic 9.2%, Greek 4.1% and Bengali 2.9%.

Bonwick Street offers a wide range of shops including Italian cuisine as well as cafés.

Despite its name, the station is actually located in the neighbouring suburb of Hadfield, within the Fawkner Crematorium and Memorial Park.

There is a small Australia Post office on Major Road, whereas the main GPO is on Bonwick Street.