Hamilton, PA

Hamilton is a city located in Mercer County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 17,812. The city is the county seat of Mercer County and home to the University of Pittsburgh. Hamilton has been designated a Tree City USA by the National Arbor Day Foundation since 2000.

The area that now comprises Hamilton was first settled in 1796 by Adam Stephen and his family. The town was named after Alexander Hamilton, who served as George Washington's Secretary of Treasury. The original plat for Hamilton was drawn up on July 4th, 1816. The town grew rapidly due to its location on the main road between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and its access to water resources via the Susquehanna River. By 1840, Hamilton had a population of 2,500 people and boasted three churches, four schools, two newspapers (the " Pennsylvania Freeman" and "The Western Journal"), two banks (the First National Bank of Hamilton and the Mercantile Bank), three hotels (the Union Hotel and Hamiltons Hotel), several stores, a cotton mill powered by water from Lake Monongahela, several tanneries and an iron foundry.

In 1851-52 John McMillan built McMillan Hall on College Avenue which served as both a schoolhouse for boys until 1898 when it became Mercer County's first high school; it is now known as McMillon High School. In 1865-66 Samuel Mather erected Mather Hall which served as Mercer County's first courthouse until 1907 when it was replaced by a new building at Fourth Street and Washington Avenue; it is now known as Mercer County Superior Courtroom 1 & 2. In 1870-71 James Jardine erected Jardine Hall which became Mercer County's second high school; it closed in 1965 but reopened in 2006 as Heritage High School - East Campus under new ownership with ties to nearby Duquesne University

In 1892 James Jardine constructed what would become known as "Jardine Park", an 8 acre park located at Sixth Street between College Avenue & Chestnut Street which today features tennis courts (which were added in 1922), baseball fields (which were added in 1925), football fields (which were added in 1926), playgrounds (which were added in 1928) basketball courts (which were added in 1969) picnic areas & shelters (added in 1978) & an indoor pool opened in 1985; it also includes a pond with fishing opportunities & gardens planted with native trees

By 1900 Hamilton had a population of 10,000 people and boasted fifteen churches - including Presbyterian Church (1836), Episcopal Church (1838), Methodist Church (1841), Baptist Church(1848), Congregational Church(1850), German Evangelical Lutheran Zion Church(1856) - four schools - including Central School(opened 1847/closed 1951; rebuilt 1954/closed 1990)), East End School(opened 1865/closed 1971)), West End School(opened 1889/closed 1966)), Hamiltons School for Girls(opened 1893/closed 1977)), Franklin Elementary School(opened 1908/closed 1957)) plus two banks - First National Bank of Hamilton (#1 Chestnut Street)(founded 1816)& Mercantile Bank (#2 Chestnut Street)(founded 1837); there were also three hotels - Union Hotel (#4 Sixth Street)(founded 1830)/ Hamiltons Hotel (#5 Sixth Street)(founded 1830)/Lake View House (#7 Fifth Avenue)(built c 1800)) In 1903 James Jardine donated land for what would become Jardine Park Hospital which opened that year; today it serves primarily as an outpatient clinic for patients from surrounding communities who cannot afford to travel to larger hospitals