Green Hills

Nashville Attorney Ward Dewitt was a regular at Metro Nashville Archives when I worked there. He was a patron, a volunteer and became a friend to all the staff. We looked forward to his visits and his stories of old Nashville.  The first time I remember him visiting, he was looking for information on the Green Hills neighborhood and shared some Green Hills history with me. Mr. Dewitt was bothered that everything in the area now bore the name, but that few knew how Green Hills began. It started out as a new subdivision near David Lipscomb's Bible College. It was out in the country with wide fields and few houses. The new neighborhood was east of Hillsboro Road and border on Belmont Boulevard. The developer was John Calhoun. News ads boasted that all the lots would be supplied with water and electricity. It was a place to escape the heat and pollution of the city. Two plats were filed with the register of deeds, the first in 1926 and the second in 1927. Street names in the development include Observatory, Bonner, and Green Hills Drives. He was not sure how the subdivision was named.  I found a clue in a Tennessean article. The neighborhood was promoted as being on the highest elevation in the area, with "a wealth of big shade trees and plenty of luxurious grass." (The Tennessean April 3, 1927.)

Davidson County Register of Deeds, Plat book 547, page 128

Davidson County Register of Deeds, Plat book 547, page 139

In 1939, the Green Hills Market opened on Hillsboro Road, taking the name of the neighborhood.  In 1943, the owners of the market took over management of the adjoining Green Hills Pharmacy.

The Tennessean, September 15, 1939

The Tennessean, March 5, 1943

Green Hills is now in one of the busiest areas of the county and covers a large area along both sides of Hillsboro Road. Green Hills Mall is just up the road from the old neighborhood. There are many restaurants and businesses, schools and churches close by.   Many of the old homes have been demolished with new, larger homes built in their place. As Nashville grows and changes it is fun to remember.