Discovery Bay was first visited by Europeans in 1790, during the expedition of Manuel Quimper in the Princesa Real, with Juan Carrasco as pilot.

The wreck of War Hawk, a clipper ship which burned and sank in 1883, is a popular dive site in the bay, near Mill Point.

The town at Mill Point dwindled after the closing of the sawmill, and vanished after the later collapse of the local timber industry.

Until around 2008, the prominent remains of another famous sawmill were visible farther down the shore from Mill Point, near what was Maynard, Washington, at the foot of the bay.

The romantic, derelict building was adjacent to Highway 101, and was thus seen by every passing motorist; it was one of the most-photographed sites in the area for decades.