Kallista's history has moved from likely use by Aboriginals prior to white settlement, to slow development by loggers and farmers, through settler selection to the current mix of state forest (Sherbrooke Forest, part of the Dandenong Ranges National Park), residential housing and agriculture. Kallista's history is closely related to the suburbs around Kallista, including Sherbrooke, Sassafras, Olinda, The Patch, Monbulk and Belgrave. From being a distant holiday town from Melbourne in the early to mid part of the twentieth century, Kallista is now part of greater metropolitan Melbourne.