The International Cartographic Association was established by 13 founding member nations in Bern, Switzerland in 1959.  The inaugural meeting took place in June at Wabern (near Bern) with Austria, Belgium, France, West Germany, Finland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States attending.  The decision was made at this meeting to formally establish the Association, and delegated two official languages: English and French.  By 1991 the ICA had grown to 62 member nations, with a further significant increase in recent years to over 80 countries and 12 affiliates.

The purpose of the ICA was to generate international cooperation in the field of cartography, and also to affiliate with the International Geographical Union while retaining a level of autonomy.  The Association initially appointed a provisional Executive Committee from representatives of seven member nations.  The mandate of this committee was to organise the first General Assembly of Delegates in Paris in 1961.

The first General Assembly was attended by 84 delegates from 29 countries. This meeting had an extensive social programme and was probably the most glamorous conference the ICA has ever held.  It included dinner at the Eiffel Tower, a cruise on the River Seine, a night visit to the Louvre Museum, and a visit to a fashion parade at Christian Dior.  As part of the business programme, delegates adopted the official Statues of the Organisation, thereby formally creating the ICA. There were 26 inaugural member nations.

The ICA has been officially registered as an idealistic non-profit organisation in the Swedish national organisation register since January 20, 2000 (# 885002-1018).