The city status was conferred by the provincial legislature of Buenos Aires on 17 November 1975, in the administration of Francisco Tomeo, last Radical Intendente (Mayor) of Merlo Partido.

Parque San Martín is bordered by the cities of Merlo (north and west), Libertad (east) and Pontevedra and Mariano Acosta (south).

The land was leased to different private investors and by the mid 19th century it was bought by John Wyatt Smith who established one of the finest farms in Buenos Aires.

By the turn of the century the estancia was sold to Roberto Cano who built a petit French-like mansion in his estate, still stood as a neighborhood landmark.

The majority of the population belong to the lower middle and working classes and the district suffers from high rates of poverty and unemployment.