Formed March 20, 1873 (82nd county)
Hamilton County (2,518), Syracuse (1,826)
The light tan brick and concrete Art Deco courthouse 1937 design is standard in western Kansas. United States Highway 50 is one block south of the courthouse, which is situated on Main Street between B and C streets. The designers are H. G. Overend and C. F. Boucher. Kearny County’s courthouse is the twin to this one. An 1887 courthouse preceded this one in Syracuse, the only county seat. The county was founded on March 20, 1873 from Native American Territory as the 82nd county. The county is named for United States Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton. The county seat is named for Syracuse, New York.
Hamilton County government consists of a sheriff, a clerk, an attorney, a treasurer, a coroner, and an appraiser (executive). It has 5 Commissioners (legislative.) Seven District Court Judges serve Hamilton, Finney, Greeley, Kearny, Scott, and Wichita counties (judicial.) The county is in western Kansas on the border with Colorado. Pueblo, Colorado with west and Dodge City, Kansas is east of the county. The Arkansas River travels through the county. The county center is 5.9 miles North-Northwest of Syracuse. The county is surrounded clockwise by Greeley, Wichita, Kearny, Grant, and Stanton counties and Colorado.
The area of the county is 996 square miles. It is 17 out of 105 in the state. It ranks 93 out of 105 in population in the state. It has a density of 2.5 persons per square mile making it 97 out of 105 in the state. Hamilton County has 75.7% of its population in its incorporated areas. United States Highways 50/400 cross east to west in the county from Kearny County to Colorado. The county is an overall rectangle. Syracuse is south and slightly east of center in the county. Syracuse is the county seat and the largest city. It is 72.5% of the county population. The county seat is pronounced SEE-RA-KUES.
Coolidge
Syracuse
