The town was established as a stopping point on the Yarra Track, the route to the Woods Point and Upper Goulburn goldfields, with a butcher's shop and store in existence by the time the town was surveyed in 1864. It prospered following the reconstruction of the Yarra Track as an all weather dray and coach road under engineer Clement Wilks in the 1870s. It was named after Mary Steavenson, the wife of Assistant Commissioner of Roads and Bridges John Steavenson after whom the popular Steavenson Falls are named. The Marysville Post Office opened on 1 March 1865 followed by a school in 1870, and a public hall, library and mechanics institute in 1890. By the 1920s, Marysville had become a tourist destination, with the Marysville Tourist and Progress Association formed in 1924. Attractions promoted at the time were fern gullies, views, and walking tracks to Steavenson Falls. Twelve guest houses had been established by 1920, one of the best known of these being the Cumberland Guest House. At this time a rail service operated between Melbourne and nearby Healesville, and the town became a popular destination for couples on their honeymoon.