[5] Greenfield was laid out in 1841, and named for the greenery of the original town site.

The Greenfield Opera House Building, which opened in 1888, is known as the "Jewel of the Square" and is still used for the summer productions of the Dade County Community Theater.

It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places along with the Washington Hotel.

[8] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.14 square miles (2.95 km2), all land.

There were 709 housing units at an average density of 621.9 per square mile (240.1/km2).

38.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

37.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 23.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

[13] Greenfield R-IV gained international notoriety in 2022 for refusing to renew the contract of a secondary English teacher who used a worksheet in class regarding “racial privilege.” https://www.newsweek.com/teacher-loses-job-after-assigning-how-racially-privileged-are-you-paper-1696136 Greenfield has a lending library, the Dade County Library.