The lower end of the Rimac valley was divided among several districts ruled by a lord (curaca), each charged with administering the lands and water along a pre-Inca irrigation network.

[10] The district's central location and proximity to San Isidro and Miraflores, have also contributed to it becoming an increasingly popular residential option.

[10] Jesús María is experiencing a housing and construction boom, and many casonas (older large, luxury homes) are being replaced with high-rise apartments and condominiums.

Commissioned by President Fernando Belaúnde Terry, and designed by a team headed in part by architects Enrique Ciriani, Jorge Páez, Jorge Bernuy, and Nikita Smirnoff Bracamonte, San Felipe was designed to combine a high residential density with ample green space, and shopping, banking, and schooling[13] opportunities for residents,[14][15] and is widely considered the cornerstone of Jesús María's middle-class identity.

[19] San José Park -which serves a de facto main square for the district- marks the district's original "downtown".

[20] One of the largest parks in the city of Lima, El Campo de Marte, is located in Jesús María.

Other important medical centers within the district are the private Clĺnica San Felipe, and the national Police and Military Hospitals.