The name of the town derived from Potawatomi chief Mettaywah, who lived in the area before signing the 1833 Treaty of Chicago and being displaced to Kansas.

[4] Many Potawatomi returned to Illinois annually until the end of the nineteenth century to visit their burial grounds.

Famous residents and property owners within the area now known as Mettawa have included two-time presidential nominee Adlai E. Stevenson, city planner Edward H. Bennett, and more recently, news anchor and rancher Bill Kurtis and Chicago Bears' linebacker Brian Urlacher (brother of current Mettawa Mayor Casey Urlacher) and running back Matt Forte.

Mettawa was founded by conservationist landowners and continues to be a center of land conservation and restoration activities.

MOLA supports Mettawa-area residents and open lands (including unincorporated housing developments that are surrounded by village land) with public workdays and educational programs, and provides quality open space management on village properties.

MOLA maintains the Whippoorwill Farm Preserve, an open lands area owned by the village (just west of I-94 at the northwest corner of IL-60/Townline Road and Riverwoods Boulevard).

Commercial development has occurred within and adjacent to Mettawa in recent years, despite resistance by residents and the Village Board).

This building achieved LEED Gold Certification and in March 2009 was named Green Development of the Year by the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP).

Through the 1980s and 1990s, many residents of Mettawa opposed Grainger's plans for office development, fearing it would compromise the village's pastoral character.

[15] This issue was a source of significant contention during the tenure of Mayor Edward FitzSimons, who argued that fighting Grainger outright rather than negotiating could lead to unfavorable outcomes for the village.

[16] In spite of this, Grainger purchased 535 acres (2.17 km2) of land in Mettawa (1993–1998), then disconnected from the village to become part of unincorporated Lake County.

The resulting Grainger Forest Preserve hosts an equestrian center and includes open lands filled with rare ecosystems and species.

The Deerpath Farm[17] conservation community, Mettawa's largest (200-acre (0.81 km2)) PUD, includes 140 acres (0.57 km2) of restored open lands managed by the Lake Forest Open Lands Association,[18] and also sponsors community workdays and nature education events.

Adjacent communities include Lake Forest, Lincolnshire, Vernon Hills, Libertyville, and Green Oaks.