The area was opened up by settlers from the 1860s. Progress in developing the land around Cranbourne was difficult because of the Koo Wee Rup swamp. William Lyall bought land in the swamp area. He helped organize draining the swamp to make it usable as farmland. The region has a strong farming history. A major cattle market started at Cranbourne in the 1870s. This was helped with the arrival of the railway in 1887. A market gardening industry began after World War I with the arrival of Italian immigrants.