Hamilton-missouri, 2007
Hamilton Township’s story
168 years in pictures
Census counts: 975 in 1870, 1,690 in 2020. The archive holds 9 old photos and papers going back to 2007 and 2 maps from 1924 on.
- 1858Hamilton Township is settled
Hamilton TownshipMO
92% more nonprofits per person than the typical Missouri town.
Population
2,342
2025 Census estimate · +2.3% since 2020
Median home value
$190K
Census ACS
Household income
$60K
median
Median age
41.2
years
Jobs based here
927
Balanced
Is Hamilton Township a good place to live?
Hamilton Township’s best subject grades are an A for cost of living and civic life; its weakest is a C− for health. Among 247 Missouri towns, just 6 have a lower share of renters spending 30% or more of income on rent than Hamilton Township. The biggest park or preserve is Hamilton City Lake, at 160 acres. Hamilton Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Hamilton Township stand out
Where Hamilton Township beats most towns.
Community nonprofits per 1,000 residents
Hamilton Township7.3
Typical U.S. town3.7
Typical MO town3.8
Civic lifeA
92% more nonprofits per person
than the typical Missouri town
Charities, civic groups and human services; churches not counted.
0historic places
History
Settled in 1858
A long history
A history going back 168 years.
How Hamilton Township grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Missouri), ordered by how far Hamilton Township is from typical.
Cost of livingTypical home $190K, 2.3 years of the Kansas City metro’s $83K median household incomeAOpen →HealthCameron Regional Medical Center 10 miles awayC−Open →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 40% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listBOpen →Jobs & income$60K median household incomeC+Open →SchoolsB−Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 6.7 of 20; 7.5% of households have no car; 2.4% of workers walk, bike or ride transitB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors5 miles of trailsC+Open →HistoryBOpen →Civic life7.3 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsAOpen →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Hamilton Township: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Hamilton Township, and how to reach them.
PowerFarmers Electric Coop13.6¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterHamilton PWS1 health-based violation in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet6 providers96% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Hamilton Township’s trash rules yet
Register to voteOnlineIn Missouri you can register online until 27 days before Election Day, in person until 27 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 27 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereCaldwellCaldwell County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Aug 2019
ZIP codes64644, 6464964644 95% · 64649 5%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Hamilton Township.
HealthC−
Health in Hamilton Township trails 78% of U.S. towns
Hamilton Township sits above both the Missouri town median (30%) and the median of U.S. towns (25%) on this measure. Hamilton Township beats the Missouri average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 8. 16% of adults report frequent physical distress in Hamilton Township.
22%healthier than U.S. townsC−Health Grade
| Hamilton Township | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 30% | 25% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 15% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 37% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 17% | 14% |
32 measures vs. Missouri
0 better24 too close to call8 worse
| What stands out | Hamilton Township | MO |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 10.1% | 8% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 19.8% | 15.8% |
| More adults with heart disease | 8.4% | 6.8% |
Cameron Regional Medical Center
10 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
SchoolsB−
Public schools in Hamilton Township fall behind 54% of Missouri districts
Its public schools are run by Hamilton R-II. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
46%of MO districts it outscoresB−School Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton Elem.Largest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 270 | B+ |
| Penney HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 186 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MO on state tests and graduation
Climate
Hamilton Township has four seasons and pleasant summers
Hamilton Township has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 87°, January nights drop to 18° and about 8 inches of snow falls in a winter.
8″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter21–39°
Spring42–64°
Summer64–86°
Fall43–66°
Oct 17
typical first frost
Apr 23
typical last frost
+1.0°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C+
About one in six working residents works right in Hamilton Township
Most working residents leave Hamilton Township for work: only 17% work in town. Since 2013, Hamilton Township has added 488 jobs, to 927 in 2023. 8.2% of Hamilton Township residents live below the poverty line, against 14% in Missouri’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns.
17%work in town
| Hamilton Township | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 17% | 13% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 8.2% | 14% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $60,000 | $62,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
In Hamilton Township17%
Hamilton17%
Kansas City10%
Cameron10%
St. Joseph8%
41 mi
median commute distance
927
jobs based in Hamilton Township
Balanced
jobs vs. working residents
B−
Walkability grade: more walkable than 52% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B
Hamilton Township faces a moderate natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 60% of U.S. communities.
40risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingCold wavesTornadoes
5
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Who lives here
An age mix much like Missouri’s
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Missouri average. Hamilton Township has grown 2.3% since 2020, to 2,342 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 31% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 32% across Missouri.
41.2median age · MO 39
| Hamilton Township | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 31% | 22% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 24% | 23% | 22% |
| Median age | 41.2 years | 38.5 years | 40.5 years |
Hamilton TownshipMissouriUnited States
Ages · share of residents
13%
Education · adults 25 and older
No diploma6%
High school34%
Some college20%
Associate’s10%
Bachelor’s18%
Graduate13%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 88 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.6 points). Across Missouri, 50.7% of residents are women.
| Hamilton Township | MO | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 13% | 11.9% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.9% | 10.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.2% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.3% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.8% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.8% | 11.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.6% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.5% | 10.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.9% | 7.3% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.6% | 8.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 33.6% | 30.2% | 26% |
| Some college | 19.5% | 20.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.3% | 8.4% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.2% | 19.8% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.8% | 12.6% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 2,300, single groups can be off by several points
0%conserved
0%
conserved · 0 of 22,197 acres
5.1 mi
of trails · 0.1 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hamilton City Lake | 0.5 mi | 160 |
| 2. J.C. Penney Boyhood Home | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Hamilton Township
18pages on Hamilton Township
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Hamilton Township; the nearest are
North Central Missouri CollegeCommunity college · Public · Trenton32.2 mi$5,370 in-state tuitionMissouri Western State UniversityUniversity or college · Public · Saint Joseph39.7 mi$10,306 in-state tuition
About 4 of every 100 Hamilton Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Missouri.
About Hamilton Township
City in Caldwell County, Missouri, United States
Hamilton is a city in northern Caldwell County, Missouri, United States. The population was 1,690 at the 2020 census. It is known as the hometown of James Cash Penney, who built a national apparel-related business, J. C. Penney. It is also the hometown of Jenny Doan, who developed the Missouri Star Quilt Company. The town is known for an annual quilt festival.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 1.4 sq mi
- Elevation
- 988 ft
- ZIP code
- 64644
- Area code
- 816
Hamilton Township’s neighbors
5 towns share a border with Hamilton Township.
Sheridan TownshipGomer TownshipKidder TownshipKingston TownshipKidderHamilton Township
How the neighbors grade
| Town | MO rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton Township | — | — | A | — | B− | C− |
| Sheridan Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Gomer Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Kidder Township · Kidder | — | — | A+ | — | B | C− |
| Kingston Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Hamilton Township and Kidder Township have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Hamilton Township and Kidder Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Sheridan Township, Gomer Township and Kingston Township aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Kidder and Kidder Township are one community, graded once. Compare Hamilton Township with a neighbor →
Questions about Hamilton Township
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Hamilton Township, MO a good place to live?
92% more nonprofits per person than the typical Missouri town.