[4] This area was designated as within Royal Oak Township; it was first settled by European Americans in 1840, but remained sparsely populated for many decades following.

The first major housing development was constructed in 1914 at the time of World War I, when the township sold land to the Majestic Land Company to be developed as the Oak Park subdivision.

[5] The village incorporated as a city on October 29, 1945, following the end of World War II.

Stimulated by the GI Bill which aided veterans in buying new housing, highways to improve commuting, and planned developments in the late 1950s, Oak Park from 1950 to 1960 was named as "America's Fastest Growing City".

Much of its population was second- and third-generation children of European immigrants who had settled in Detroit in the early 20th century.

In 1995, Detroit-based window manufacturer WeatherGard moved its headquarters to Oak Park.

In 2002 and 2004, the city annexed portions of neighboring Royal Oak Township to expand its land and tax base.

[8] On November 8, 2011, the citizens of Oak Park elected a new mayor, Marian McClellan.

In April 2015, the city approved the development of a new FedEx distribution center which will be located on a 60-acre plot of land at the site of the former Detroit Artillery Armory.

[11] On November 3, 2015, the citizens of Oak Park re-elected McClellan, who was running against Aaron Tobin.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.16 square miles (13.36 km2), all of it land.

[12] Oak Park is adjacent to the cities of Detroit to the south, Southfield to the west, Pleasant Ridge, Ferndale, and Royal Oak Township to the east, Huntington Woods to the northeast, and Berkley to the north.

At that time, one school in Oak Park had a special education department for children with learning disabilities: Lessenger Elementary School on Albany St. at Sunset St. Consequently, many families with such special children gravitated to the neighborhood surrounding Lessenger, creating a "cluster" of such families rarely found elsewhere.

In the 1950s and 1960s the school system was renowned statewide due to the efforts of progressive and dedicated teachers and community support which liberally allocated tax dollars to fund education through voter approved bond issues.