The opening of the Washington–Baltimore Turnpike (modern day US 1) in 1812 and the B&O Railroad Washington Branch line in 1835 brought more settlers to the area.

[6][7] The city's founder, Christopher Clark Hyatt (1799–1884), purchased his first parcel of land in the area in 1845.

[7] Hyatt opened a store and began mail delivery, officially naming the nascent community "Hyattsville" in his 1859 application to become postmaster.

In the years following the Civil War, Hyatt and other local landowners subdivided their properties and sold lots, and the population of Hyattsville grew.

[8] In 1893, the Hyattsville Board of Commissioners changed their property tax to only apply to the value of land, and not improvements.

[9] Since 2000, the city has undergone a major redevelopment, including significant residential and retail development in the Arts District Hyattsville (located in the Gateway Arts District), and the area surrounding the Hyattsville Crossing station and The Mall at Prince George's.

[10] In the latter area, University Town Center contains residential condos, student housing, office buildings, a public plaza, and retail space, including a 14-screen movie theater and several restaurants, as well as a campus of Prince George's Community College.

As of 2020[update], additional residential and retail development is underway near the West Hyattsville Metro station.

[11] Along Route 1, craft brewers and distillers have played a notable role in revitalizing old commercial properties.

Hispanic or Latino of any race were 34.0% of the population (16.4% Salvadorean, 4.1% Mexican, 3.1% Guatemalan, 1.2% Honduran, 1.1% Dominican, 0.8% Puerto Rican).

[33] The original mid-century modern building featured a googie-style flying saucer entryway.

[49] The University of Maryland campus in College Park is located approximately two miles north on Baltimore Avenue (Route 1) from historic Hyattsville.

US 1 connects southward to Washington, D.C., and northward through College Park to Interstate 95/Interstate 495 (the Capital Beltway).

Hyattsville is also served by the Riverdale MARC commuter train station, as well as a few Metrobus and TheBus routes.

Numerous city streets include bicycle sharrows, along with a few unprotected bike lanes.

In the episode airing April 27, the Geena Davis television series Commander in Chief depicted Hyattsville as having twelve murders in six months, and was accused of depicting Hyattsville as an urban ghetto dominated by poor minorities.