Designed by Philip Trammell Shutze in 1928 for Edward and Emily Inman, Swan House is situated on 20+ acres in Atlanta’s prestigious Tuxedo Park neighborhood and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Shutze himself gave the Swan House its colloquial name, based on the motif of swans present throughout the house’s interior. Stone obelisks and fountains are present outside the house, both of which are reminiscent of Renaissance architecture. Sculptures by the entrance representing the seasons of summer and autumn contribute to "the Italian villa feeling."

The Inman family’s influence on Atlanta expands far beyond the notoriety of Swan House. As affluent heirs to a cotton fortune, the family used their money to help rebuild Atlanta after the destruction it endured during the Civil War. Samuel M. Inman was instrumental in the early days of Agnes Scott College and the Georgia School of Technology, now known as Georgia Institute of Technology. In 1866, he joined with Joel Hurt to form the East Atlanta Land Company to develop Inman Park–Atlanta’s first neighborhood and the place of Lizzy and Scott’s first home. Edward’s sister, Josephine VanDyke Richardson was the mother of Louise Allen, a prominent figure in Atlanta’s civic and philanthropic life and wife of Atlanta mayor Ivan Allen Jr.

In 1966, the Atlanta Historical Society purchased the home and most of its original furnishings, ranging from 18th-century antiques to 20th-century objects. It opened to the public in 1967 as a house museum and headquarters of the Atlanta Historical Society. The house has been featured in countless publications and films, including The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part II.