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Initially people of Dravidian and Austroloid stock inhabited this region. Around two thousand five hundred years ago, it became an area of significant Jain activity. According to some, the last Tirthankar of Jain religion, Mahavira Vardhamana, used to live and work in the area. The district and headquarters town thus came to be known as Bardhaman. Some identify the spread of Jainism in West Bengal with the Aryanisation of the region. Evidence of major Jain activity exists in the Jain temples on Pareshnath Hill in neighbouring Jharkhand. There is an old Jain temple at Begunia on the bank of the Barakar river. A number of temples in neighbouring Bankura district also bear evidence of major Jain activity in the region.

Later, the area was possibly part of the Vishnupur kingdom, where the Malla dynasty ruled for around a thousand years till the advent of the British. There is a Vishnupur style temple in Chhotodighari village providing a clue to its links with Vishnupur. The local dialect and culture of the region has closer affinities with those of Bankura and Vishnupur than the other neighbouring areas. It is evident that the area was part of different kingdoms at different points of time.

The word Bakreshwar comes from the name of Lord Shiva worshipped in the locality. Bakra means bent or curved. Ishwar means God. Mythologically it is said that in Satya Yuga during the marriage ceremony of Lakshmi and Narayan, Astabakra Muni (then known as Subrata Muni) was insulted by Indra. The muni was so enraged that he developed 8 cripples in his body (Ashtabakra Muni means a sage with 8 curved cripples, probably kyphoscoliotic). Ashtabakra Muni was blessed by lord Shiva here after many years of Tapashya (meditation). This place is also famous as one of the 51 Shakti Pithas where there is a temple dedicated to Adi Shakti. This is a major pilgrimage spot for Hindus.

Bishnupur was ruled by an uninterrupted line of Hindu Rajas of the Malla dynasty and thus developed a unique form of architecture and has perhaps the most brilliant and detailed terracotta work in Eastern India. The name is derived from 'Vishnu', the majority of people belonging to the 'Vaishnava' sect.
King Raghunath Singh Dev II was the most powerful king of the dynasty and his reign started in AD 1626, almost at the same time when the Mughal Emperor Shahjahan occupied the throne in Delhi. The administration of Bengal was in the hands of Shahjahan's son Suja. He developed a deep friendship with the king of Bishnupur and there followed a period of peace when art and music, already flourishing reached its height.

The origin of the name “Darjeeling” is most likely from the Tibetan words ‘Dorje’ which means ‘thunderbolt’ and ‘Ling’ which means place or land. Quite literally, it is the ‘Land of the Thunderbolt’. Originally, this was the name given to a Buddhist monastery atop the Observatory Hill which over time became the name of the whole surrounding area.

Historically, Darjeeling was part of Sikkim and the Kingdom of Sikkim extended as far as eastern Nepal. However, the late 1700s saw a barrage of attacks from Nepal resulting in Darjeeling becoming a part of Nepal. This changed in 1814 when the British East India Company declared war with Nepal due to border disputes. The victorious British forced the Nepalese to cede 4,000 square miles (10,000 km²) of territory through a treaty signed at Segouli at the end of 1816. The Rajah (King) of Sikkim was reinstated making Sikkim (including Darjeeling) a buffer state between Nepal and Bhutan.

Ten years after the treaty, fresh dispute broke out and the Governor General William Bentick sent two officers – Captain Lloyd and Mr. J.W. Grant, Commercial Resident of Malda to restore normalcy. The two officers found Darjeeling to be a suitable to establish a “sanitarium” (a type of health resort) and the strategic location of Darjeeling as a gateway to Nepal and Bhutan was an added bonus.

Digha, originally known as Beerkul during Warren Hastings time, was discovered in the late 18th century by the British. It is mentioned as the "Brighton of the East" in one of Warren Hasting's letters (1780 AD) to his wife. Also In 1923, an English tourist John Frank Smith was charmed by the beauty of Digha and started living here, whose writings slowly gave exposure to this place. After independence, the place was developed as a beach resort by the Chief Minister of West Bengal.

Originally, there was place called Beerkul, where Digha lies today. This name was referred in Warren Hastings's letters as Brighton of the East.[1] An English tourish John Frank Smith started living here in 1923 and his writings provided a good exposure to this place. He convinced West Bengal Chief Minister Bidhan Chandra Roy to develop this place to be a beach resort.

History of Howrah City dates back to 500 years. But, the district has thousands of years of rich heritage in the form of the great Bengali kingdom of Bhurshut. Venetian explorer Ceasare de Federici, who travelled India during 1565–79, mentioned a place called Buttor in his journal circa 1578.[3] As per his description, this was the place up to which large ships could travel (in the Hoogli River) and so, it was the dock for loading and unloading goods for those ships.[3] This place is identifiable with the modern day neighbourhood Bator of Howrah.[3] Bator was also mentioned in the Bengali poetry Manasamangal written by Bipradas Pipilai in 1495.[4]
In 1713, the Bengal Council of British East India Company, on the accession of the Emperor Farrukhsiyar, grand son of Aurangzeb, to the throne of Delhi, sent a deputation to him with a petition for a settlement of five villages on west bank of Hooghly river along with thirty-three villages on the east bank.[5] The list of villages appeared in the Consultation Book of the Council dated 4 May 1714. The five villages on the west bank on Hooghly river were: 'Salica' (Salkia), 'Harirah' (Howrah), 'Cassundeah' (Kasundia), 'Ramkrishnopoor' (Ramkrishnapur), and 'Battar' (Bator): all identifiable with localities of modern day Howrah city.[6] The deputation was successful except for these five villages.[6] By 1728, most of the present day Howrah district was part of either of the two zamindaris: Burdwan or Muhammand Aminpur.[6] After Battle of Plassey, as per the treaty signed with the Nawab of Bengal Mir Qasim on 11 October 1760, Howrah district (then part of Burdwan) came under control of East India Company.[7] In 1787, the Hooghly district was formed, and till 1819, the whole of the present day Howrah district was added to it.[8] The Howrah district was separated from the Hooghly district in 1843.[9]
With the establishment of the Howrah Railway Terminus in 1854 started the most important phase of its industrial development. Flour mills were established in 1855, followed by Jute mills and around 1870s, there were five mills near Howrah station.[10] The Howrah–Shalimar Railway Section and the Shalimar Terminus were constructed in 1883.
By 1914 almost every major city in India was served by the Railways and the increased demand for its rolling stocks and repair works resulted in the establishment of railway workshop in Howrah. The light engineering industry grew up after 1914.[11] This industrial boom continued throughout the second world war and brought with it rapid urbanisation phase in unplanned manner creating slums near the industrial establishments.

Until the 18th century AD, Kalimpong was a part of the Kingdom of Sikkim and was ruled by Sikkimese rulers. It was then taken over by the Bhutanese. In the 19th century, the British took over Kalimpong and merged into the present Indian state of West Bengal.

The signs of ancient prosperity are still visible everywhere at Kamarpukur. A number of ponds, tanks and old buildings and dilapidated temples still bear witness to its old glory. In olden days Kamarpukur, surrounded by extensive fields, looked like an island floating in a vast sea of green. Apart from agriculture, it was noted for cottage industries also. Sweet-meats like jilapi and nabat, hookah pipes of ebony, yarns, towels, cloth, etc., were prepared here and sent out for sale to Kolkata as well as to nearby markets. To this day, in the month of Chaitra (March- April), Kamarpukur reverberates with songs during the worship of Goddess Manasa and festival of Shiva, and in the following month, devotional choral songs of Hari are sung for three days at a stretch. Even now people belonging to the different strata of society live in peace in the tranquil atmosphere of the village.