The suburb is named after Thomas John Fuller Cadden. Cadden was the first bank manager of the Commercial Bank and was a well known philanthropist in town. He developed property on behalf of the bank.

Caddens is built mostly on two land grants belonging to John Gandell and Mary O’Connell.

A 200 acre land grant was received by John Gandell in 1814 from Governor Macquarie. Gandell was a former convict who became a superintendent of prisoner’s Barracks at Hyde Park.

Mary O’Connell, the daughter of Governor Bligh, was granted 1,055 acres when she married her second husband Maurice O’Connell. This grant was given by Governor Macquarie and became known as Coallee.

When Maurice O’Connell died in 1848, his family defaulted on the mortgage payments for Coallee and the land was sold to land speculator Andrew Hardie McCulloch. McCulloch subdivided the estate into smaller lots, allowing small settlers to move to the area.

The area became agricultural and streets in Caddens are named after the produce that was grown in the orchards in the area, including olives, apples, cherries, citrus fruits, figs, and pears.

Map showing the original land grants given to Gandell and O’Connell

Construction of Cadda Ridge Drive