The first white settlers began arriving in the Goldenrod area in the 1870's. At that time parcels of land were granted to individuals under the "State of Florida, Internal Improvement Fund." The area was desolate and wild, fit only for cattle or lumber.

It is generally agreed that Goldenrod is the namesake of the wildflower, Goldenrod.

Many of the first settlers of Goldenrod arriving in the late 1870's were engaged in the culture of orange groves. In 1890, a railroad line was completed, and a freight station was built in Goldenrod in 1908.

In March of 1926, the Goldenrod Corporation was organized by James F. Wellman to develop "Suburban Homes," consisting of 158 lots bordering a two-lane dirt road called the Winter Park-Oviedo Road (now Aloma Avenue).

The Corporation was responsible for the first electricity and water in Goldenrod and establishing a park where residents enjoyed horseshoes, shuffleboard, croquet and ping pong as well as covered picnic facilities and a boat house on Perch Pond.

In the early years of the great Depression, there was little change in Goldenrod. During the latter half of the 30's, life in Goldenrod began to improve.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, everything was geared to the war effort. In 1942, if you had lived in Goldenrod you would have seen contingents of soldiers bivouacked throughout the area. It was known as "Goldenrod Garrison." After the war many of the soldiers who had been stationed in Central Florida returned to live here, and Goldenrod began the transition from a pioneer community to the beginning of a new era.