The street dates back until at least the eighteenth century, when it was a carriageway across common land in what was then largely rural Surrey. Historically named Black Horse Lane after a public house at the junction with Sheen Road, it gained its current name in the 1840s when, according to the Richmond Local History Society, it was "almost certainly" renamed in honour of Queen Victoria.[4] The street was improved from 1825 at the behest of Joseph Ellis, the owner of the Star and Garter Hotel, despite concerns from Richmond tradesman that his might mean that visitors would bypass the town when travelling to Richmond Hill.[5] Some of the street's older buildings, including the Grade II-listed Richmond Gate Hotel, are at its southern end.[6]
The more modern social housing of the Queen's Road Estate was developed between 1971 and 1983 by the Richmond Parish Lands Charity and designed by the architects Darbourne & Darke. The first phase of the estate was Grade II listed by Historic England in 2012.[7]
The history of the street was the subject of a Museum of Richmond exhibition in 2020/21. A digital version of the exhibition is still available to view online.[8]