The settlement, founded in 1607 and used by the Spanish Empire as a shipyard, due to its natural harbor, was known as Partido San Rosendo until April 30, 1840, when it took the current name.

Prior to that, in the early 1900s, Spaniards began immigrating to Cuba, with some, mostly Galicians, settling in La Coloma.

Later, at the height of the Cuban Revolution, La Coloma served as a strategic location of the 26th of July Movement and was used to smuggle in weapons to aid in the fight against Fulgencio Batista, as well as other acts of sabotage to weaken the efforts of rural guards.

[2] Among the western Caribbean coast, from Cape San Antonio until Surgidero de Batabanó, in Mayabeque Province, is one of the very few settlements and the largest one.

Playa las Canas, a small village and beach, lies few km west of La Coloma's port.