The river was named after Charles Anderson-Pelham, Lord Worsley, a member of the Western Australian Land and Emigration Committee, which also included James Stirling, John Hutt, William Hutt (MP), Edward Barrett-Lennard and Captain Bunbury.

The committee promoted emigration to the Swan River colony and the Western Australian Land Company, which established the Australind land settlement project in 1841 under Marshall Waller Clifton.

In 1984 construction of the Worsley Alumina refinery began and the area experienced an unexpected revival.

[4] The refinery and mine are a joint venture operation between South32 (86%), Japan Alumina Associates (Australia) Pty Ltd (10%) and Sojitz Alumina Pty Ltd (4%).

[5] Bauxite ore is delivered to the refinery by a 51 km (32 mi) conveyor belt from the Boddington Bauxite Mine site at Mount Saddleback south of Boddington.