Hartford's South Green was originally laid out as common pasture along the southern edge of the 17th-century town plat and developed into a green by virtue of its location at the intersection of three roads. Well into the 19th century, the green remained pasture and the area around it farmland. One building remains from this period situated at the northeast tip. It is the life-time residence of Henry Barnard, an important educational reformer. The building was listed as a National Historic Landmark in 1966.

Pressure for development of the area began in the first half of the 19th century as available land within the limits of the city was rapidly being used up. Traffic was heavy along the "Ancient Road to Wethersfield," the boundary of the green and the southern boundary of Hartford. This was finally expanded to the south in 1854 in a response for more land. In 1816 the green was fenced in. The single building facing the green representative of this period is #53 Main Street, a small residence in the Greek Revival style now used as a funeral parlour.

The building boom around the green began in 1850 with the construction of an Italianate mansion at the corner of Wyllys Street and Wethersfield Avenue. It is no longer standing but it set the tone for development in the area for the next several decades, during which substantial homes in the Italianate, Second Empire and Queen Anne styles were built in the neighborhood. This building boom generated a need for churches. Two were constructed in the immediate area: the South Park Methodist Church (1875) which faces the green across Main Street; and St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church (1868) located north of the green and having interiors designed by John LeFarge. Such a fine neighborhood required an improved park, so in 1869 an iron fence and curbs were placed around it. During this period, the park was often rented out for circuses, carnivals and other types of public entertainment.

Between 1870 and 1930 another building boom occurred. Three and four-story apartment houses were built which today are an important part of the green's streetscape. Of particular interest is the elaborate building containing 72 apartments at the southeast corner by Dunkelberger and Gelman in 1920. George F. Dunkelberger is better known for his design of the bridges along the Merritt Parkway.

South Green, laid out in the early days of settlement as common pasture, evolved into the focal point of a fashionable neighborhood in the mid-19th century comprised of several individually important buildings. Today, the green is basically intact as it was at the end of the 19th century, but the neighborhood has suffered a serious economic decline which is reflected in the poor condition of the buildings surrounding it.