[3][4] Chatham Village was built 1932–1936, and was designed by Clarence Stein and Henry Wright on the principles of the Garden City Movement of the early 20th century.

It was created in the Georgian Colonial Revival style, and was built to show that affordable housing for the working class could be attractive and safe.

In Jacobs' view, the success of Chatham Village as an urban community in a park-like setting depended upon the residents' tendencies to trust one another due to the similarities in their professional, economic, and social status.

The homes do have rear-access integral garages in the basements, but these are recessed several feet to greatly reduce the visual impact.

Thomas James Bigham (1810–1884) was an abolitionist lawyer, and his house was "purportedly a station on the Underground Railroad".