In 1812, the area government of Georgia took over possession of the area from the Native Americans.  The land was surveyed and sold in lots of 202.5 acres by lottery.  The residents of Georgia drew for the lots for these parcels of land and of these parcels was eventually sold to Joel Hurt's Kirkwood Land Company in 1890 for $63,000.  It was Hurt’s idea to develop a community centered around a golf course and thus he began to purchase additional acreage until he had accumulated 1,492 wooded acres.  Then he hired Frederick Olmsted to plan and design the golf community.  

In 1908 Joel Hurt sold his property for $500,000 to a group headed by Asa G. Candler, who had made his fortune from Coca-Cola.  The area officially became known as "Druid Hills" by the DeKalb County Superior Court through a charter that was granted to Asa Chandler's corporation.

Druid Hills is one of the older unincorporated neighborhoods located in DeKalb County and is home to a large number of Atlanta's historical and cultural landmarks.  There are any interesting facts are associated with Druid Hills.  One of these is that the home used in the filming of the Academy Award winning movie "Driving Miss Daisy" is a Druid Hills home.

Two architects, Lewis E. Crook Jr. and Ernest Ivey, made their marks on the neighborhood by designing a number of the homes in the area.  They also designed the Druid Hills High School, and many of the buildings located on the Emory University campus.  Crook and Ivey were influenced by another architect, Neal Reid, for whom they worked before they established their own architectural firm.  

The neighborhood of Druid Hills was planned by one of America's more famous landscape architects, Fredrick Law Olmsted, who was responsible for a garden community in Illinois.  He designed a tree-shaded neighborhood with winding streets interspersed with small parks.  

Beginning in 1900, many of Atlanta's wealthiest citizens chose Druid Hills for their residences and some of Atlanta's most noted architects to design their homes.  As a result, Druid Hills homes generally are an eclectic mixture of architectural styles nestled into the curvilinear topography of the neighborhood.  The National Register of Historic Places recognizes Druid Hills’ unique historical architecture.

DeKalb County Schools service students in elementary grades at Fernbank Elementary and high school students attend Druid Hills High School.  The City of Atlanta Schools provide education to both elementary and middle school grades at Mary Linn Elementary and Inman Middle School.  Private schools in the area include Paideia and the Howard School.

The Druid Hills Civic Association, homeowners who banded together in 1938 and is responsible for having portions of the neighborhood placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975 and 1979 and it pushed to enact a historic preservation ordinance which protects the neighborhood's historic charm and appeal as well as its historical structures by limiting changes that can be made to them.  Today, Druid Hills homes for sale also includes more modern single-family homes, lofts, condominiums and townhomes in many styles available.  The Association remains committed to defending the neighborhood against threats to the existing quality of life for its residents.