According to the New York City Parks Department, Williamsbridge was named for 18th Century farmer John Williams, who had a farm on the east bank of the Bronx River in the vicinity of Gun Hill Road and White Plains Road, and was credited with building the first bridge over the Bronx River.

The proposed zoning would preserve the area's lower density residential character and promote new development in keeping with the scale of the surrounding neighborhood.

In addition, the DCP is proposing a zoning text amendment establishing a new citywide R5A district to address the unique detached housing stock found within this neighborhood.

Clusters of one- and two-family homes are prevalent in many parts of Williamsbridge and few buildings are higher than 70 feet, even in the more densely developed portions of the neighborhood.

The proposed rezonings aim to address this zoning mismatch by ensuring that new development is of a density and scale compatible with the low-rise/low-density character of this community.

It became predominantly African American in the 1970s, and since the 1980s, has received an influx of Caribbean and West Indian immigrants.

[13] In 2018, an estimated 22% of Williamsbridge and Eastchester residents lived in poverty, compared to 25% in all of the Bronx and 20% in all of New York City.

Based on this calculation, as of 2018[update], Williamsbridge and Eastchester are considered high-income relative to the rest of the city and not gentrifying.

The Seventh Draft District World War I Monument located at East 219th Street and Bronx Blvd.

In addition to the Department of Parks cleaning up the area in 2008, there has been an annual Memorial Day service at the monument itself since 2009.

[10]: 14 The concentration of fine particulate matter, the deadliest type of air pollutant, in Williamsbridge and Eastchester is 0.0075 milligrams per cubic metre (7.5×10−9 oz/cu ft), the same as the city average.

[25] Williamsbridge and Eastchester generally have a lower rate of college-educated residents than the rest of the city as of 2018[update].

[10]: 6  The percentage of Williamsbridge and Eastchester students excelling in math rose from 32% in 2000 to 48% in 2011, though reading achievement remained constant at 37% during the same time period.

[26] Williamsbridge and Eastchester's rate of elementary school student absenteeism is slightly higher than the rest of New York City.

[11]: 24 (PDF p. 55) [10]: 6  Additionally, 70% of high school students in Williamsbridge and Eastchester graduate on time, about the same as the citywide average of 75%.