Carlton Square was originally an open space known as Globe Fields. It was owned by the Pemberton-Barnes family, which was established around 1850 by the marriage of Ann Barnes and William Pemberton.

They originally built a settlement on the site for their eight children. William set up the Pemberton Barnes Estate Company to manage the properties, though most of the shares were owned by Ann. Some of the properties were destroyed or damaged during the Second World War, and when the war was over, prefabricated homes were put up on the site.

Peabody bought a small part of the site for development in 1974 and added 196 properties.