The road originally served as a northwest–southeast route between
Fort William McKinley and
Pasay, then in the province of
Rizal, known as
Pasay–McKinley Road,
Pasay–Sakura Heiyei Road,
Manila-Makati-Fort McKinley Road, and other various names recognized by the government per section, alongside the present-day
Arnaiz Avenue. It also formed part of Route 57 or Highway 57. The road's eastern terminus was the Carabao Gate at the entrance to the Fort, on what is now the intersection with 5th Avenue. The road became disconnected in the 1950s when the Makati Commercial Center complex (now
Glorietta complex at
Ayala Center) was built over its section between Highway 54 (now EDSA) and
Makati Avenue. The section between Highway 54 and Fort Bonifacio was then realigned to continue
Ayala Avenue and became a separate road subsequently named for the
U.S. military reservation to which it leads, which was, in turn, named after
William McKinley, the 25th
President of the United States, responsible for the
U.S. colonization of the Philippines in 1898. There are two other streets named McKinley in the area: McKinley Parkway, a continuation of McKinley Road in Bonifacio Global City, and Upper McKinley Road, an unrelated road on
McKinley Hill further south via
Lawton Avenue. ==Transportation==