The origin of Birnagar dates back to the pre-colonial era.Previously it was an island in the Hooghly River. Before British came, Birnagar was named as Ula. It is mentioned in the short story Post Master by Rabindranath Tagore and in the novel Aporajito by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay. It earlier had two Zamindars, i.e.landlords. One part of Birnagar belonged to the Mukherjees, and the other part was of the Mustafis. Rajsekhar Bose (Parasuram) was from Birnagar. He was a well-known author of many short stories basically comedies in Bengali. Gamchha — a handloom towel used by Bengalis was invented in Palitpara, Birnagar.