According to the oral histories of the local Marka people, Sansanding was founded by al-hajj Alpha Mamadu Kuma sometime between the 11th and 13th centuries, after the fall of the Wagadu Empire.

[4]: 172 The Scottish explorer, Mungo Park visited the town in July 1796 and again in September 1805 when he stayed for over six weeks on his last, fatal journey.

The market-place is a large square, and the different articles of merchandize are exposed for sale on stalls covered with mats, to shade them from the sun.

On this day astonishing crowds of people come from the country to purchase articles in wholesale, and retail them in the different villages, &c.[6].In the 1820s, border clashes between the Massina Empire and the Bamana of Segou cut the city of Djenne off from some of its southern trade routes, further cementing Sansanding's status as the preeminent trade town of the region.

Umar Tall's conquest of the region and the ensuing instability damaged its prosperity however, and re-oriented trade routes away from the Niger towards an east-west axis.

[7] An attack in December 1863 succeeded in breaching the city walls, but the Toucouleur Empire troops stopped to pillage the town, giving time for the defenders to organize a successful counterattack.