The city was named after David Burbank, a New Hampshire-born dentist and entrepreneur who established a sheep ranch there in 1867.

The Battle of La Providencia (also called the "Second Battle of Cahuenga Pass") took place in 1845. It resulted in the unseating of the Spanish Governor of California and led to his replacement by the Mexican leader Pío Pico. Remnants of the battle are still turning up years later in the vicinity of Warner Bros. Studio, with Burbank residents sometimes digging up cannonballs in their gardens.

In 1911, wealthy farmer Joseph Fawkes secured two patents for the nation's first monorail and began developing what would become known as the "Fawkes Folly" aerial trolley--a cigar-shaped monorail driven by a propeller that he promised would carry passengers from Burbank to downtown Los Angeles in 10 minutes. The first open car accommodated about 20 passengers and was suspended from an overhead track and supported by wooden beams. It made just one run, gliding a foot or so before falling to pieces. Nobody was injured, but city officials viewed this test run as a failure and focused on getting a Pacific Electric Streetcar line into Burbank instead.

The first city seal adopted by Burbank featured a cantaloupe, which was a crop that had helped save the town's life when the land boom collapsed in 1889. In 1931, the original city seal was replaced and in 1978 the modern seal was adopted. The new seal shows City Hall beneath a banner but no cantaloupe. An airplane symbolizes the city's aircraft industry, the strip of film and stage light represent motion picture production. The bottom portion depicts the sun rising over the Verdugo Mountains.

At the epicenter of the creative economy and 12 miles north of Downtown Los Angeles, Burbank boasts more than 1,000 media and entertainment companies such as The Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros., Cartoon Network, and Nickelodeon. The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Conan, and The Tonight Show have all taped there in front of live studio audiences, and celebrities abound in the restaurants, cafes and neighborhoods that make up this legendary city.

In 2012, IKEA announced plans to relocate to a new site in Burbank. The new 456,000-square-foot store was completed in February 2017, and when it opened was the largest IKEA in the United States.

The city's namesake street started getting a makeover in 2007. The city spent upwards of $10 million to plant palm trees and colorful flowers, a median, new lights, benches and bike racks.

Casablanca (1942) began production a few months after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. Due to World War II, location shooting was restricted and filming near airports was banned. As a result, the film shot most of its major scenes on Stage 1 at the Warner Bros. Burbank Studios, including the film's airport scene, which featured a foggy Moroccan runway created on the stage where Humphrey Bogart's character does not fly away with Ingrid Bergman. Other famous movies filmed in Burbank include High Noon, Blazing Saddles, and Mary Poppins.

In 1926, First National Pictures bought a 78-acre (320,000 m²) site on Olive Avenue near Dark Canyon. Two years later, First National was purchased by Warner Bros. A number of Warner Bros. films were thereafter branded First National Pictures until July 1936, when First National Pictures was dissolved.

During World War II, the entire area of Lockheed's Vega Aircraft factory was camouflaged to foil any enemy reconnaissance effort. The factory was hidden beneath a complete suburb replete with rubber automobiles and peaceful rural neighborhood scenes painted on canvas. Hundreds of fake trees and shrubs were positioned to give the entire area a three-dimensional appearance. The fake trees and shrubs were created from chicken wire that had been treated with an adhesive and then covered with chicken feathers to provide a leafy texture.