The suburb has it origins when Henry Brown Marshall purchased land in the north of Johannesburg in 1893.

[2]: 72  Prior to the discovery of gold on the Witwatersrand in 1886, the suburb lay on land on one of the original farms that make up Johannesburg, called Syferfontein.

[3] It was called the Melrose Estate of 713 acres and at the time was 9.7km north of the central business district.

The development, which cost ZAR 800 million to build, began construction in 2007, with Phase One completed in November 2009.

[4] The area is characterised by cobbled alleys, red brick buildings, and open-air cafés, and gives preference to pedestrians.