The area was mostly forest until the 1200s and then mixed agriculture until the end of 16th century. In the 17th century, Edgware became a small market town due to the production of hay, and the selling of fattened cattle driven from other parts of England.

For many centuries it has been known as Bury Farm and, although it was considered the centre of Edgware Manor, and was where the manorial lord would lodge when in Edgware, it was not the manor house as such.

In February 1735 the farm was robbed by the infamous Gregory Gang, which included Richard Turpin. They assaulted the 70-year-old farmer, Mr Lawrence, and raped one of the maids.

Nearby Edgwarebury Open Space started with the purchase of 29.5 acres by Hendon Rural District Council and Middlesex County Council in July 1930. The space was opened as a recreation ground in 1932, after £7000 had been spent on converting the land into a park.

Adjoining, and to the southwest, is a portion of Metropolitan Open Space, known locally as the Edgware Roughs on which are the remaining brick piles of what was planned to be a Northern Line extention connecting Edgware to Bushey, with a station called Brockley Hill.

A section of the M1 motorway north of Bury farm opened in 1967.

The manor has been held by All Souls College, Oxford, since 1442 but in 2013 it was announced that they wanted to lease the land around Bury Farm to a group who wanted to build an 18 hole golf course.