The house was originally built in the 15th century for Muhammad Rumfa then the young grandchild of the Hausa monarch who had just been appointed Makama Kano, a traditional title. Rumfa later became King and moved to a new palace but subsequent Makamas lived in the building. After the British capture of Kano in 1903, the place briefly served as an office for the colonial officers in Kano.[1] The structure was later divided into three parts. One section became a museum ran by the Department of Antiquities, another became a primary school and a third maintained the original intention as a residential building.[1] Gidan Makama is now part of museums under management of the National Commission of Museums and Monuments and one of the old structures depicting traditional Hausa architecture. The structure originally contained mud walls typical of the Hausa tradition in that period but in later years some modern renovation work has taken place.