Nashville was settled by Anglo-Europeans in 1780, and over the next two decades settlers staked claims on what was originally land cultivated and hunted by Native Americans.

In the Forest Hills area, William Nash received a 640-acre (2.6 km2) grant along what is now Granny White Pike south of Tyne Boulevard.

Nash opted to sell off parcels of his land, including a 160-acre (0.65 km2) tract to Henry Compton in the early 19th century.

A Revolutionary War veteran named McCrory chose to give his land grant to his son Thomas, who came to the area in 1790.

The younger McCrory went on to acquire some 3,700 acres (15 km2) in Davidson and Williamson counties, including land along what is now Old Hickory Boulevard.

The property was purchased by William B. Carpenter in 1837, and his daughter and son-in-law Mary E. and George Mayfield inherited the house in 1869.

As Nashville assumed prominence on the western frontier, a road known as the Natchez Trace was created to provide an overland route for settlers returning from New Orleans.

Construction of the Natchez Trace began in 1802, and work continued on improving the road until it was officially declared complete in 1809.

With the advent of steamboat travel, the use of the Natchez Trace declined significantly, and the old roadbed was used as local farm roads by the mid-19th century.

As National Park Service historian Dawson Phelps wrote in the 1940s, "All this has been very confusing to many Nashvillians who dabble in local history.

Each has a definite idea that one or the other of the roads mentioned above is the Old Trace and is eager, at the drop of a hat, to defend his position obstinately, profanely, and at great length.

"[1] However, a recent study of the Natchez Trace identified one of the main routes extending through what is now Forest Hills along either side of present-day Hillsboro Pike.

In northern Williamson County, the Natchez Trace crossed the Harpeth River in the vicinity of Union Bridge Road.

The Natchez Trace then turned north along present-day Stockit Road, and two branches diverged in what is now Edwin Warner Park.

This branch of the Natchez Trace left the main road at Leiper's Fork in Williamson County and extended east to Franklin.

[4] Felix Compton's home along Hillsboro Pike, which was on the land that has been developed into Burton Hills, stood until the 1980s when it was dismantled and moved to Dickson County.

In 1890, Scruggs built an elaborate two-story, frame, Queen Anne style dwelling with Eastlake detailing along Hillsboro Pike.

With perforated gables and pediments, carved panels, a fishscale shingle roof, and numerous spindles and lattice work, the Scruggs house served as a landmark along the Pike.

Forest Hills is bordered by Old Hickory Boulevard on the south, Granny White Pike on the east, Harding Place (also known as Battery Lane) on the north, and Chickering Road/The City of Belle Meade on the west.

These steep-sided hills were covered with forest until the early 20th century, when residential development extended south from Nashville.

In addition to the area's many hills, the south-central section of the community contains what was originally fertile farmland within the Otter Creek watershed.

Since 1970, hundreds of dwellings have been built in Forest Hills, and the community no longer retains many tracts of open space or farmland.

[citation needed] Although 19th-century dwellings are rare, Forest Hills contains a number of significant houses built in the early 20th century.

Built in 1939, this two-story brick dwelling was constructed as a replica of The Hermitage; it was listed on the National Register in 1998 for its architectural significance.