Hamilton, Indiana facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hamilton, Indiana
Town
Location of Hamilton in DeKalb County and Steuben County, Indiana.
Country	United States
State	Indiana
Counties	Steuben, DeKalb
Township	Otsego, Franklin
Area
• Total	3.05 sq mi (7.91 km2)
• Land	2.10 sq mi (5.44 km2)
• Water	0.95 sq mi (2.47 km2)
Elevation	912 ft (278 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	1,529
• Density	727.75/sq mi (281.02/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (EST)
ZIP code	46742
Area code(s)	260
FIPS code	18-30594
GNIS feature ID	2396982
Website	http://hamiltonin.org/

Hamilton is a small town in Indiana, right on the edge of two counties: Steuben County and DeKalb County. It's part of Otsego Township in Steuben County and Franklin Township in DeKalb County. In 2010, about 1,532 people lived there.

History of Hamilton

In the late 1830s, a doctor named Samuel Tuttle bought the land where Hamilton now stands. He was the first to plan out the town. Its first name was "Enterprise."

Dr. Tuttle later sold most of the land to Fisher Howe, a businessman from New York. In 1838, Howe sent an agent, Sidney Gambia, to help the town grow. However, many people in Enterprise got sick that year. To make the town seem better, its name was changed to Hamilton.

Eventually, Sidney Gambia bought the town for a small amount of money. The name "Town of Hamilton" was officially recorded in 1844. A post office was also set up in 1837 under the name Enterprise. It was renamed Hamilton in 1844 and is still open today.

Geography and Surroundings

Hamilton covers about 3.15 square miles (8.16 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, but a good part of it, about 0.76 square miles (1.97 square kilometers), is water.

Roads and Services

The town is served by Indiana Highway 1 and Indiana Highway 427. Bellefontaine Road also connects Hamilton to Old US 27 in Pleasant Lake. The Hamilton Police Department and the Hamilton Volunteer Fire Department help keep the town safe.

A Lakeside Resort Town

Hamilton is mainly a resort town. This means many people come to visit, especially in the summer. These visitors are often called "lakers" because the town is built around a beautiful lake.

The lake is the most important feature of Hamilton. A famous children's author, Edward Eager, used to vacation here in the 1920s. He even wrote about the lake and local spots like the hotel at Cold Harbor in one of his books, Magic by the Lake.

Crystal Bay and Crystal Cove

A few years ago, a large gravel pit on the northwest side of the lake closed down. After getting permission from state and federal officials, the old pits were filled with water. The land separating them from the main lake was removed. This created new areas called Crystal Bay and Crystal Cove. These new lakeside spots were then sold for building new homes.

Hamilton's Neighborhoods

Some of the neighborhoods in Hamilton include Russels Point, Oakwood, Penn Park, Forest Park, and Island Park.

Population Information

In 2010, the town of Hamilton had 1,532 people living there. There were 684 households in total. The population density was about 641 people per square mile (247 people per square kilometer).

Education

The town of Hamilton is part of the Hamilton Community Schools district. Students living in Hamilton attend these local schools:

• Hamilton Elementary School
• Hamilton Junior-Senior High School

Notable People from Hamilton

Some important people have connections to Hamilton:

• Edgar "Pop" Buell was a humanitarian aid worker. He helped people in Laos during the 1960s and 1970s.
• James I. Farley was born on a farm near Hamilton. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1933 to 1939.

See also

In Spanish: Hamilton (Indiana) para niños