The first Europeans settled in 1869 by Robert Wright and his wife Mary, who built a small limestone and mud dwelling on 20 acres (81,000 m2) of land 3 km east of John Reynell's settlement at Reynella.

In 1897 vigneron Richard Mostyn Owen (c1874-1941) established his Mount Hurtle winery and built a homestead called Woodcroft Farm, from which the suburb took its name.

Although traces of Wright's dwelling still exist in a small park named after him, and Mount Hurtle is a still a boutique winery, both settlements passed out of their respective families in the 1970s into the hands of the South Australian Lands Commission and the entire area was subdivided into housing in the early 1 In 2007 the Vines caravan park which was located on Sir James Hardy Way closed to make way for a retirement village.

Woodcroft is considered a working middle class suburb with a high proportion of residents employed as Intermediate Clerical, Sales and Service Workers and in Retail Trade.

Woodcroft College is an Anglican combined primary and secondary school in the area, although it is technically located in Morphett Vale.