Thöningsen has been part of the Soest Börde since the Middle Ages. In 1168 the village was mentioned for the first time with the name "Thodenchusen". The farms of Willingheppen, Hemmis, Kutmecke, Ellingsen as well as Wehringsen, which originally belonged to the Hinderking dominion, also belong to today's district. The incorporation into the district town of Soest took place in 1969. The school building was moved to the Westphalian Open Air Museum in Detmold in 1970.