Hamilton, Missouri
| Hamilton, Missouri | |
|---|---|
| City | |
 Location of Caldwell County |
|
| Coordinates: 39°44′38″N 93°59′56″W / 39.74389°N 93.99889°WCoordinates: 39°44′38″N 93°59′56″W / 39.74389°N 93.99889°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Missouri |
| County | Caldwell |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1.41 sq mi (3.65 km2) |
| • Land | 1.40 sq mi (3.63 km2) |
| • Water | 0.01 sq mi (0.03 km2) |
| Elevation | 988 ft (301 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 1,809 |
| • Estimate (2012) | 1,743 |
| • Density | 1,292.1/sq mi (498.9/km2) |
| Time zone | Central (CST) (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP code | 64644 |
| Area code(s) | 816 |
| FIPS code | 29-30034 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0719026 |
Hamilton is a city in Caldwell County, Missouri, United States. The population was 1,809 at the 2010 census. It is known as the hometown of James Cash Penney, who built a large apparel-related business, J. C. Penney, and the hometown of Jenny Doan, who has built a large quilting-related business, Missouri Star Quilt Co.
Hamilton, Missouri owes its existence largely to the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad. Prior to 1854 the area around Hamilton was unsettled prairie land belonging to the U.S. Government. With the coming of the railroad, the Hamilton Town Company was formed to develop a tract of land along the rails.
At first the name Prairie City was intended for the new community. However, Albert Gallatin Davis, a key member of the Town Company, chose Hamilton instead, in honor of two early Americans, Founding Father and first Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton, and Joseph Hamilton, an early American lawyer and military leader killed at the Battle of the Thames during the War of 1812.
The first house in Hamilton, fittingly, was built by Davis in the summer of 1855, as well as the first business, a general store, in 1857. The store would serve as Hamilton's first post office and Davis as the first postmaster in 1858. The Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad was finally completed on February 14, 1859, and the first train arrived that day. A railroad depot was constructed by the fall of 1859, with Albert Gallatin Davis appointed the first railroad and express agent.
By the outbreak of the American Civil War, Hamilton consisted of about 25 homes and businesses. The town saw little involvement in the war, despite northwest and north-central Missouri being a hotbed of guerrilla warfare. The majority of the towns residents held strong pro-Union sympathies, with the few pro-Confederates among the populace forced to take an oath of allegiance. Being on the rail line made Hamilton a tempting target for Confederate "bushwhackers", so beginning in the fall of 1861, a company of the 50th Illinois Infantry arrived to help the local Home Guard unit defend the town.
...
Wikipedia