History

Named in honor of Alexander Hamilton, this county was formed from Montgomery on 12 Feb 1816; but its independent organization was not completed until it achieved its mandated population of 1288 taxable inhabitants qualified to vote.  On 1 Jan 1838 it was partially organized and detached from Montgomery county and by 1847 it was fully organized.  The county occupies the central portions of the Adirondacks and within its 1745 square miles of mountainous land is located some 77 lakes. The county seat was located in the village of Sageville, which is now a part of the village of Lake Pleasant.  It is currently comprised of the following townships: Arietta, Benson, Hope, Indian Lake, Inlet, Lake Pleasant, Long Lake, Morehouse, and Wells.  At one time there was also a town of Gilman, which was formed 23 Apr 1839 with land primarily taken from Wells and Lake Pleasant and it was abolished 6 Apr 1860.

 

History of Hamilton County - from the 1824, 1841, 1860, 1872 gazetteers
Town Historiesyear town was
established
Town History Found in GazetteerOther Independent
Histories (year)
1824184118601872
Arietta1836---yesyesyes---
Benson1860---------yes---
Gilman1839-1860---yesyes------
Hope1818yesyesyesyes---
Indian Lake1858------yesyes1917
Inlet1901---------------
Lake Pleasant1812yesyesyesyes---
Long Lake1837---yesyesyes---
Morehouse1835---yesyesyes---
Wells1805yesyesyesyes---

Maps of Hamilton County
YearDescriptionSizePreview
1804Herkimer & Montgomery County map
(Hamilton Co. was formed in 1816)
258K44K
1817Hamilton County Lay map233K73K
1818Hamilton County map83K-- 
c1835Map of Bethune Tract - Morehouse (with names of early residents - 1830s)79K--
1839Hamilton County map57K--
1840Hamilton County Burr map366K76K
1856Hamilton County Map49K--
1860Merritt Map of Raquette River289K59K
1860Hamilton County with surrounding counties hosted by Herkimer GenWeb83K--
1860Hamilton County map with outlines of towns60K--
1865Hamilton County map with outlines of towns193K86K
1866Schenectady and Ogdensburg Railroad map of Hamilton and surrounding counties310K77K
1882Adirondack Railroad map of Hamilton Co.199K72K
1885Hamilton County map86K--
1895Adirondack map421K80K
1897Hamilton County map187K42K
1902Hamilton County map149K--
1917Hamilton County map154K55K
CurrentHamilton County map (hand drawn)small 
CurrentNew York State County mapsmall 

Crimes

  • Edward Earl: Murderer, Hope Falls

  • Minerva Murder, The

  • Churches

  • Church History of the Town of Morehouse

  • Pastors of the Ohio Charge of the M.E. Church: 1841-1937 (includes Morehouse)

  • Hotels

  • Adirondack Hotels (pre-1880)

  • 1906 Summer Outings Sacandaga Valley; The Pleasure and Benefits of a Few Weeks of Leisure Spent Among the Beautiful Resorts of the Adirondacks, Published by Passenger Department, Fonda, Johnstown & Gloversville Railroad and listing information about several Hamilton County hotels.

  • Industry and Occupations

  • Firewardens of Hamilton county, 1892

  • Hamilton County Guides 1874-1895

  • Hamilton County guides, 1893

  • Log Markers

  • Long Lake Hotel, Village, Lake and Guides - 1874

  • Raquette Lake Railroad Work Logs

  • Misc. Articles

  • Chamber of Commerce Pamphlet - Town of Inlet

  • Conklingville Dam

  • Field Notes of Melvin W. Lethbridge - historical information regarding primarily the Northville area and surrounding region, including parts of Fulton, Hamilton and Saratoga counties.  This includes a nice writeup on the Slocum family, and some interesting history of the Isdell and Pettingill families.

  • Land Purchases, Patents and Grants - a summary of those in Hamilton County

  • Morehouse Union, Documents Relating to the

  • Tax Title Laws and the Forest Preserve, 1892 - includes description of a court case involving a hunting camp of Alvah Dunning's.

  • Old Days in the Adirondacks, by Heloise Durant Rose, 1902 - personal memories of author, a NY Times article

  • Placenames

    Post Offices

  • Indian Lake Postmasters

  • Post Offices for various years, some listing the postmaster

  • Schools

  • Hope Falls School Souvenir - 1898 Listing of Students

  • Schools in Morehouse

  • Misc. Fulton/Hamilton County School Information For the Year 1908

  • Links to other sites:

  • Indian Lake NY - A History: A wonderful site from the Town Historian!

  • St. Hubert's Isle / Church of the Good Shepherd - Raquette Lake

  • Adirondack Great Camps - lots of pictures and history of great camps around Raquette Lake, also some campfire recipes... a neat site to visit

  • History of Hamilton County - from Hope Farm Press (a link to their site)

  • The Adirondack Mountains - includes history, photos and many other topics for the area - a great site!

  • History of the Adirondacks: from Adirondacks.com. This site also includes a lot of visitor information!

  • Adirondack History - interesting history, centering primarily around Sacandaga Park the "Coney Island of the North"

  • About the Adirondack Park : from the Adirondack Park Agency Visitor Centers

  • Old USGS Maps of New England & New York - a great link!  Maps are circa 1900.

  • Hamilton County under "Maps" link to a very detailed map that shows towns and many villages/hamlets!

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