Before settlers moving south and west arrived in the new nation, this area was Choctaw Indian country. The first settlement, known as Arnold, stood one mile north of the present town center. Charley A. Sheldon of Massachusetts, scouting for timber, referred to the area as “pine hill,” and when the first post office was established in 1839 it received the name Pine Hill. The railroad's arrival in 1888 brought Pine Hill to its present location. Many original settlers came from North and South Carolina, and early families included Arnold, Brewer, Evans, Fuller, Gorman, Hall, Hare, Jordan, Lindsey, Mayton, Morgan, Shamburger, Sheffield, and Small. Other nearby settlements that contributed to Pine Hill's population were Yellow Bluff, Bethel, and Enon. Important developments followed: the post office was established in 1839; Dr. J. A. Thompson became the first doctor in 1856; the Birmingham & Mobile Railroad was established in 1888; the first official school began in 1890; the first church building, Pine Hill Baptist Church, began in 1894; the town was incorporated and Clay Sheffield Bank was established in 1895; the Vredenburgh Saw Mill Company began operating in 1903; the Alabama & Northwestern Railroad was established in 1911; the first telephone system was established in 1925; electrical service began in 1927; the Bank of Pine Hill was chartered in 1946; the municipal water system was built in 1951; the Volunteer Fire Department began in 1952; the MacMillan-Bloedel Wood Products Complex was established and the municipal airport was built in 1966; the natural gas distribution system began in 1967; the surface water treatment plant and sewerage system were established in 1970; and Pine Hill purchased municipal park and museum property in 1981.