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History · Hamill

Hamill’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Hamill. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

0old images & papers
0recent photos

The story

from WikipediaRead it all ↗

The town was started in April 1909 on the east side of No Moccasin Lake. Originally named Roseland, Hamill was renamed for Gail Hamill the pioneer merchant, postmaster and banker in town. In 1909 the Milwaukee Road surveyed a route from Oacoma, South Dakota through Roseland and beyond but the line was never built.

Carrie Ingalls (sister of Little House on the Prairie's Laura Ingalls Wilder) was transferred to the local newspaper; Roseland Review in 1910, from Pedro, South Dakota.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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Start Hamill’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Hamill’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people from Hamill

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EFElijah Eagle FeatherWriting & Arts
By decade

Hamill, decade by decade

Before
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
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National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Hamill is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Hamill has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Pocahontas Schoolhouse in Dixon, 15.6 miles away.

Hamill and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Hamill. Tap a dot.
Pocahontas SchoolhouseTripp County Veteran's MemorialE. G. Barnum HouseChamberlain Rest Stop TipiGregory National BankRobert A. Crawford House

Closest to Hamill

Pocahontas SchoolhouseDixon · Building15.6miTripp County Veteran's MemorialWinner · Object17miE. G. Barnum HouseWilson · Built 191119.1miChamberlain Rest Stop TipiChamberlain · Object22.1miGregory National BankEdens · Built 191022.8mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Pocahontas Schoolhouse’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Hamill?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Hamill’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Condon📜 Roseland📜 King📜 Lone Star
We left the porch light on

Where to, neighbor?

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/19 · 2025-01-01
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