During the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent, Kâğıthane, then Sadâbad, was an extensively forested area used by the Ottoman court for hunting, riding and other equestrian pursuits.

In the 17th and 18th centuries the area became increasingly fashionable especially during the Tulip Age reign of Sultan Ahmed III when many nobles had mansions and palaces built here.

During the resign of Sultan Selim III some of the mansions and palaces were rebuilt, as they were again in the mid-19th century when Krikor Balyan was employed to bring Sadabad back to life.

From the 1950s onwards settlement of the Kâğıthane area began with illegal slums (known as gecekondus in Turkish) as thousands of migrants moved from Anatolia to work in the factories, building sites or services sector.

In the early 21st century Kâğıthane was rapidly transformed by urban regeneration projects due to its central location and connections to the new intra-city transport networks.