The area that is now Sylvan Hills was once part of the Perkerson and Gilbert holdings that are believed to date to 1831.
Housing development began in Sylvan Hills about 1920 during post-WWI growth. The boom tapered off during the Depression then started up again after WWII and lasted until the neighborhood was completely built out.
At one time, there was a center of shops, including a movie theater, at Dill Avenue and Sylvan Road. Shops along the railroad tracks attracted personnel from nearby Fort McPherson.