The Cadigal people of Eora, who belonged to the larger Dharug linguistic group, were mostly dependent on fishing, hunting, and harvesting plants and shellfish. The Wangal clan to the west and the Kameygal clan to the south, near Botany Bay, surrounded Darlington, which was a part of their southern region.

The first known account of Darlington’s history in Britain dates back to 1789, when Governor Arthur Phillip was given directives by the English government to reserve land for churches and schools in the newly established prison colony.