Eskisehir when translated into English word by word means the “old city”, as Eski is old and Sehir is city. The city’s history goes back to Early Bronze Age, according to the archeological remains of human habitats and artifacts found in the perimeters of the city. It has been founded by the Phrygians around 1000 BC, known as Dorylaion then, meaning the city of Doryleos, referring to its founder’s name in ancient Greek. As it sat on the crossroads of trade routes joining Asia Minor with the East, the Hittite, Phrygian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk, and Ottoman civilizations left their mark on it. During the Crusades that lasted more than two hundred years, it had become a battle ground between the Crusaders and the new tribes coming in from Central Asia to settle in the area.  After the final battle fought against the Crusaders by the Seljuks in 1100 AD, the city was in total ruins. The Seljuks, as the victors, changed the name Dorylaion to Eskisehir as an homage to its historical past.

In 1288 with the agreements made between the Seljuks and the Ottomans the city was passed to the Ottoman rule without much conflict. The centuries-long peaceful life under the Ottomans came to an end with the start of World War I.  In 1919 it was invaded by the British, and in 1921 by the Greeks. There have been fierce fightings and the Turkish army drove the occupying forces away freeing the city on September of 1922.  Once again the war had destroyed what was left behind by the previous civilizations and deprived Eskisehir of its historical treasures. In this sense Odunpazari carries a special cultural importance as the city's oldest district.

Odunpazari’s name comes from being the “timber market” of the city (odun is wood and pazari is market), where part of the area was used for timber storage. The date of some of the buildings go back to the Seljuks during the 12^th century but most were built during the Ottoman period. The district developed in a hilly section considered safe to live against the frequent floods caused by the Porsuk river. In the 1950s the threat of the floods gradually ceased after a dam was built to control the water level. 

Odunpazari holds a place in UNESCO’s Tentative World Heritage List, thus giving the city a much-needed support to preserve these homes reflecting the traditional Ottoman architecture. Originally they were made of wood, the frontal facades with large bay windows on the upper floors called "oriel windows” an architectural term, meaning they are extending out but not reaching down to the ground. Inside the houses there were "divans" placed next to the windows for people to sit omfortably and watch the street. The beneficiaries of these windows, called “cumba” in Turkish, were usually the women who spent more time at home since the social codes did not consider it proper for women to be outdoors too much without being accompanied by a male member of the family or by a chaperone. 

The houses were built couple of stories high, usually three, and had their backyards in the back with their entrances at the front. The ground floors had kitchens and storage areas, and the upper floors were living quarters. The homes were big enough for large families with couple generations to live together as each could have privacy in their own separate floor.

Not many families or people are using these houses to live in them now. The Municipality of Eskisehir has made great efforts for the renovations by replacing part of their wooden structures with concrete but keeping their original architecture and looks intact. The houses have become favorite places for the cafes, restaurants, gift shops opened along the cobbled narrow streets making Odunpazari a unique and colorful place for the visitors.