Harpeth Hall School is a private, college-preparatory school for girls in Green Hills, Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Its beginning dates back to 1865 as a seminary for young ladies. After various mergers and name changes, the antecedent school closed in 1951, leading to the founding of the present school. The campus consists of a middle school and high school on a site. History With the scheduled closing of Nashville's Ward-Belmont high school pending about 1950, a group of concerned citizens organized to ensure that a college-preparatory school for girls would continue the city. This group purchased a 26-acre tract of land known as the P.M. Estes estate in southwest Nashville at the corner of Estes Road and Hobbs Road. One of the building committee members, Mary Elizabeth Cayce, suggested the name of the new school be "Harpeth Hall", because of the proximity to the Harpeth River and that the words sounded "euphonius" In the fall of 1951, the Ward-Belmont college-preparatory division reopened on a new campus and with a new name—the Harpeth Hall School. Harpeth Hall began the new school term with 161 students in grades 9 through 12, almost all of whom had transferred from Ward-Belmont. A Nashville historical marker at the 3801 Hobbs Road site commemorates the event. The first head of school, Mrs. Susan S. Souby, had previously headed the high school department at Ward-Belmont. The first administrators of Harpeth Hall and all but two members of the faculty were former members of the Ward-Belmont staff. The existing house on the newly acquired property served as Harpeth Hall's first school building, later named Souby Hall. Within the next year, the Southern Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools accredited the school. It rapidly gained membership in the National Association of Independent Schools, the Southern Association of Independent Schools, and the Mid-South Association of Independent Schools. During Harpeth Hall's first decade, the facilities were expanded to include additional classroom space, an auditorium, gymnasium and cafeteria. In 1968, under the leadership of school head Idanelle McMurry, the Daugh W. Smith Middle School opened. In 1998, a strategic plan was developed to address future faculty, program and facility needs. In 2000, a five-year, $42 million capital campaign entitled the "Campaign for Harpeth Hall" was launched to address these needs. By 2005, significant improvements to facilities were completed including a new library, a track and soccer complex, a visual arts center, and