Hampton Historical Society, Illinois

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…

Have you ever wondered about the people buried in Hampton Cemetery—and the surprising stories their lives can tell? One remarkable story is that of Olivia Patricia “Pat” Trevillyan Thomas, a woman whose life stretched across parts of three centuries. Born in Stuart, Iowa, raised in Moline, Illinois, and later a resident of New York, Thomas lived to age 114. For a time, she was recognized as the oldest person in America…

Veteran’s Memorial 1936 (C.E.Sikes) Village of Hampton Memorial Day invites us to pause and remember the men and women who gave their lives in service to the United States. Observed on Monday, May 25, 2026, this day is more than the unofficial start of summer—it is a solemn national moment of gratitude, reflection, and remembrance for those whose sacrifice secured the freedoms we enjoy today. Across towns and neighborhoods, families gather,…

Celebrating the People who impacted the Village of Hampton THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD From the 1870s into the turn of the twentieth century, few figures were more closely woven into everyday life in Hampton, Illinois, than Samuel Heagy. Through his coal ventures, his grocery and dry-goods trade, and his long-running civic service, he helped supply jobs, goods, and steady local leadership at a time when villages like Hampton depended on a handful…