Crown Portions 9 and 10 in the Parish of Keelbundoora, County of Burke were sold to Neil McLean on 5 February 1840 for £816.

McLean’s brother, Malcolm, took over the land in 1842, but then returned to Scotland with his wife and children in the late 1850’s, leaving an agent in control.

Much of the flatter land was cleared of vegetation for farming aside from some of the large River Red Gums (Eucalyptus camaldulensis).

[6] The land transfer was examined as part of the 1909 Royal Commission on the Acquisition of Certain Estates by Sir Thomas Bent.

One of the first residential subdivisions in Macleod occurred on 12 November 1910 when Edith Macleod auctioned 133 allotments from an area marketed as the Strathallan Estate, fronting Greensborough Road, Strathallan Road, Edward Street and Railway Place (Somers Avenue).

Macleod Post Office opened on 11 December 1923, located in the general store on the south-west corner of Greensborough and Strathallan Roads.

[12] Macleod High School opened on 31 May 1954 after a one-week delay caused by the condition of unmade roads, which prevented furniture deliveries.

They play in the Diamond Valley Cricket Association (DVCA) and are based at Macleod Park, known as "The Nest".

There is also a local basketball team called the Banyule Hawks, whose home ground is the Macleod Recreation Centre.