Hamilton is a town in Martin County,

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, United States. The population was 306 at the 2020 census, down from 408 in

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

History

The town was founded in 1804 at the highest point of navigation on the

Roanoke River The Roanoke River ( ) runs long through southern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina in the United States. A major river of the southeastern United States, it drains a largely rural area of the coastal plain from the eastern edge of the ...

.Revels, Amber. "Our Town Hamilton: Reconnecting with roots." ''Eastern Living.'' Spring 2010: 66-68. Print.

American Civil War

According to local historians, the most significant historical event of early Hamilton was the battle and fall of Fort Branch during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, when Union vessels and troops came upriver from

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

in an attempt to reach Weldon to cut off supplies to General

Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...

. The fort, located southeast of Hamilton along the Roanoke River, protected Weldon until the day after General Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court House, whereupon the railroad line over the Weldon bridge had no more military significance. Afterwards, the fort was abandoned and the cannons were dumped into the Roanoke by departing

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

troops.

Reconstruction

In 1887, the town saw construction of its first railroad, the Hamilton Railroad & Lumber Company, also known as Hitch's Railroad. This was a short line that served the lumber industry in the area, but later expanded operations.

Modern Era

In the 1910s, a Rosenwald school was constructed in Hamilton to serve the local black community. Alternating dates of construction are reported, with the earliest being 1914. The school was operated until 1960. Hamilton, once a thriving, beautiful Victorian port town with many of its homes listed in the National Historic Registry, has been in decline in recent years, losing more than half its population since 1980.

Geography

Hamilton is in northwestern Martin County, bordered to the east by

Bertie County Bertie County ( )Talk Like a Tarheel
, from the North Carolina Col ...

. The

forms the eastern border of the town and serves as the county line.

North Carolina Highway 125 North Carolina Highway 125 (NC 125) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina that serves the communities of Williamston, Hamilton, Oak City, Hobgood, Scotland Neck, Halifax, and Roanoke Rapids. Route descrip ...

passes through the town as West Liberty Street and South Front Street, while Highway 903 passes through entirely on Front Street. Highway 125 leads southeast to Williamston, the Martin

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

, and west to Oak City, while Highway 903 leads south to Robersonville and northwest to Scotland Neck. According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the town has a total area of , all land. It sits at an elevation of above sea level along the

at its 60 Mile mark.

Demographics

2020 census

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 516 people, 191 households, and 145 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 216 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 44.38%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 53.29%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.19%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 1.55% from other races, and 0.58% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 3.49% of the population. There were 191 households, out of which 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.4% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 20.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.6% were non-families. 22.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 2.98. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.2% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 23.4% from 25 to 44, 27.7% from 45 to 64, and 18.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 72.3 males. The median income for a household in the town was $23,625, and the median income for a family was $28,977. Males had a median income of $27,500 versus $16,563 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $12,832. About 18.2% of families and 24.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 32.8% of those under age 18 and 43.4% of those age 65 or over.

Culture & Community

Fort Branch Civil War Site

In July 1972, a group of men from

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

came and began pulling cannons from the river. In an effort to keep the cannons in Martin County, the group was accused of violating North Carolina's antiquities laws. The courts officially decided that the cannons belong to the state under the North Carolina Department of Archives and History. The department decided to permanently loan the artifact to Fort Branch. The Historic Hamilton Commission, started in 1976, is in charge of 52 other historic sites in the county, including St. Martin's Episcopal Church. The church was established as a missionary station of the

Episcopal Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United States ...

church in 1868. It was founded primarily by members of the Boyle family, including Francis Atherton Boyle and Mary A. Boyle. St. Martin's was admitted to the Episcopal convention in 1873. Building began in 1879. All of the construction materials were from local suppliers, except the bell and stained glass, which were imported from

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

.Manning, Francis M. and W.H. Booker. ''Religion and Education in Martin County: 1774–1974''. Williamston, N.C.: Enterprise Publ. Co., 1974. Print. The church was consecrated on May 17, 1882. The Rev. Dr. Watson preached the sermon; Bishop Lyman celebrated

Holy Communion The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by J ...

. The church is now inactive, but is still owned by the

Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina The Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States that covers most of eastern North Carolina. The diocese was formed from the existing Diocese of North Carolina on October 9, 1883, by action of the ...

. This means it is still a consecrated church.

Hamilton Rosenwald School

Another important site in Hamilton is the

Rosenwald School The Rosenwald School project built more than 5,000 schools, shops, and teacher homes in the United States primarily for the education of African-American children in the South during the early 20th century. The project was the product of the partn ...

, a black school funded by

Julius Rosenwald Julius Rosenwald (August 12, 1862 – January 6, 1932) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He is best known as a part-owner and leader of Sears, Roebuck and Company, and for establishing the Rosenwald Fund, which donated millions i ...

, president of Sears, Roebuck and Co. During

segregation Segregation may refer to: Separation of people * Geographical segregation, rates of two or more populations which are not homogenous throughout a defined space * School segregation * Housing segregation * Racial segregation, separation of human ...

, white schools had approximately five times the funding of the former. The

Rosenwald Fund The Rosenwald Fund (also known as the Rosenwald Foundation, the Julius Rosenwald Fund, and the Julius Rosenwald Foundation) was established in 1917 by Julius Rosenwald and his family for "the well-being of mankind." Rosenwald became part-owner of ...

sought to provide support for these underprivileged schools. According to the Roanoke River Partners, the Rosenwald School will be remodeled and used as their headquarters. Hamilton is at the exact middle of the course of the

, making it a sensible location. Despite this, and years of taxpayer funding of the Roanoke River Partners, no concrete action has been taken to restore the building, which is currently dilapidated.

References

{{authority control Towns in Martin County, North Carolina Towns in North Carolina Populated places established in 1804