 "Sandylands", one of the first houses built in Busselton, was constructed in the area beginning in 1840 by Charles Bussell, the younger brother of John Bussell.Geographe was developed as an urban area in the mid-1990s, with the Port Geographe Marina, which was opened in 1997, being constructed as part of the development; a state school, Geographe Primary School, was opened in the suburb in 2002.The construction of the marina caused seaweed to be trapped at the west of the development during winter, generating piles of the plants up to high that rendered the beach unusable and resulted in health problems due to the hydrogen sulphide (rotten egg) smell; erosion also occurred at nearby Wonnerup Beach to the east due to the new marina.