Hampton Historical Society, Illinois

In addition to all the homemade baked goods from our community, there will be something for everyone at this year’s Applefest. Here is a short list of vendors planning to be at this year’s Applefest. Be sure not to miss any of these tables or food trucks. (Location: 601 1st Ave, Hampton, IL)

Brettun and Black Store in Hampton, Illinois, invites the public to step inside local history this Saturday, September 5, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bring the family and explore this remarkable circa-1840s landmark, where the stories of the Mississippi River, early village life, and frontier commerce come together. Visitors will get a close-up look at a time when the river was still untamed, Hampton was newly settled, and the…

In 1837, Robert E. Lee, then a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, undertook one of the most important early federal efforts to improve navigation on the Mississippi River. His assignment focused on two major natural obstacles, the Des Moines Rapids and the Rock Island Rapids, which frequently halted steamboat traffic and restricted trade along the upper river. By conducting systematic depth soundings, careful mapping, and detailed surveys,…

Long before modern highways and convenience stores, the village of Hampton played a vital role in the early settlement. Positioned along the river, Hampton served as an essential stop for travelers and settlers heading west, offering fuel for steamboats and trains, a ferry crossing, and access to much‑needed supplies at a time when weeks could pass between settlements. During its early years, Hampton was a bustling center of commerce and industry.…

Long before Illiniwek Forest Preserve became a place for camping, overlooks, and community gatherings, the old Grist Mill stood along the Mississippi River as part of the region’s working landscape. Connected with the early development of Rapids City and remembered through the name of Alfred Addison Adams, the mill helped transform local grain into flour and meal at a time when farming, river access, and neighborhood industry were deeply tied together.…

Along the Great River Bike Path just North of the Quad Cities, in the quaint Village of Hampton, stands a building. Its story is as unique as the architecture and the profound stature it demands of those traveling the path. Hampton’s Village Hall stands today because the Village turned a hard-fought railroad dispute into a lasting civic investment. After the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad raised its tracks through town…

When Hampton marked America’s Bicentennial in 1976, local artist and sign‑painter Charlie Howell stepped forward with the bold, patriotic murals that still define the village’s visual identity. Howell, who began painting signs at age 17 and spent decades mastering pictorial work for General Outdoor Advertising, brought his seasoned craft to McKay’s Plating Co., transforming its long, windowless wall into a sweeping historical tableau. One mural depicts Revolutionary War soldiers advancing with…

Tucked into a display at the Hampton Historical Society’s Blacks Store, a cracked clay crock tells a larger story than its plain surface first suggests. A note records that Glen and Eileen Anderson excavated it in 1951 while digging the basement for their home at 200 First Avenue, near the Mississippi River and only about forty feet from the former Fullerton pottery site. The vessel has no maker’s mark, only an…