Most of Hamilton was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2010. Its Register listings are the Harris County Courthouse, the Hamilton Baptist Church and Pastorium and the Welcome P. Duke Log House. Its Register listings are the Harris County Courthouse, the Hamilton Baptist Church and Pastorium and the Welcome P. Duke Log House.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1828.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Hamilton’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hamilton is more historic than 56% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Hamilton’s overall grade.
Georgia towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Georgia town has 10.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Hamilton’s 19.6 sits near the middle of its state (59% of Georgia towns have fewer) while its 4 historic buildings outnumber those of 68% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share (±1.8 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1827.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Hamilton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Hamilton was founded in 1827 as seat of the newly formed Harris County. It was incorporated as a town in 1828 and as a city in 1903.
The city was named for U.S. Secretary of the Navy and governor of South Carolina Paul Hamilton (1762–1816).
In 1912, a black woman and three black men in Hamilton were lynched while being held for questioning in the murder of a white landowner. Coverage by local newspapers at the time suggested the four were guilty.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Questions about Hamilton’s history
What year was Hamilton founded?
In 1827, according to Wikidata. Hamilton’s post office opened in 1828.
How does Hamilton rank for history?
Hamilton is more historic than 56% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Hamilton?
Three places: the Harris County Courthouse (listed 1980), the Hamilton Baptist Church and Pastorium (1982) and the Welcome P. Duke Log House (1999).
How old are the homes in Hamilton?
2% of Hamilton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.8 points), against a typical 3.8% for a Georgia town; the median home was built in 2010.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (6), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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