Hamilton, North Carolina
Hamilton is a small town in Martin County, North Carolina, United States. It sits along the Roanoke River and covers about 0.49 square miles of land. The town has a population of 306 people (2020 census).
The town was founded in 1804 at the highest navigable point on the Roanoke River. A major Civil War event nearby was Fort Branch, which protected Weldon from Union forces before the end of the war. In 1972, cannons pulled from the river sparked a dispute, but the state kept ownership and loaned the cannons to Fort Branch. Hamilton later started the Historic Hamilton Commission (in 1976) to preserve local sites, including St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, which began in 1868 and was completed in 1882.
A Rosenwald School was built in the 1910s to educate Black students and operated until 1960. The school is planned to be remodeled as the headquarters for Roanoke River Partners. In recent decades Hamilton has declined from its former days as a thriving Victorian port town, losing more than half of its population since 1980.
Geography and nearby towns: The Roanoke River forms the eastern border of the town, which is also the county line with Bertie County. Major roads through Hamilton are North Carolina Highway 125 (West Liberty Street and Front Street) and Highway 903 (Front Street). NC 125 goes 12 miles southeast to Williamston and 6 miles west to Oak City; NC 903 goes 10 miles south to Robersonville and 18 miles northwest to Scotland Neck. The ZIP code is 27840 and the area code is 252.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 07:50 (CET).