Kielder is thought to take its name from the Cumbric language, comprising words whose modern Welsh forms are caled 'hard' and dwfr 'water'.

[2] There was early settlement around Kielder Castle, a hunting lodge built by the Duke of Northumberland in 1775.

Previous settlements were expanded in the 1950s by the Forestry Commission who constructed housing to accommodate the workers employed in the planting of Kielder Forest.

[5][6] The two were linked by a 24-metre (79 ft) span road bridge constructed in November 1979 over the River North Tyne at its confluence with the Kielder Burn.

[7] As with most low-lying locations in the British Isles, Kielder experiences a maritime climate with cool summers and mild winters.

[17] Although timber production remains an integral part of the forestry operation, it also has the aims of encouraging the public to use the forest as an educational resource and to sustain and enhance wildlife conservation.

[24] Its roots go back to 1849 when Algernon Percy, 4th Duke of Northumberland founded a school in the village.

Attached to the school was a three-storey community centre, containing a Northumberland County Library branch and reading room; the first floor had facilities for teaching art, woodwork and needlework.

Between 2002 and 2015 the community centre building was utilised as Kielder Youth Hostel, but had been demolished by March 2020.