Hamilton

By Tim Jon

I would have thought – and felt – that I’d have paid homage to this little, iconic Town long before this point in this (by-now) quite lengthy series of local ‘adventure’ stories; it has served as my home, location for the subject matter of numerous news events covered in my previous ‘lifetime,’ and has represented a treasured spot in both the geography of the physical Northern Virginia region, as well as my heart. 

Having driven roughly a thousand miles to my new home in Loudoun County in the summer of 1997, I crossed the Blue Ridge on Route Seven from the west and descended ‘the mountain’ (as I later came to learn this lovely colloquial terminology) toward my destination of Leesburg; my first stop (due to a combination of exhaustion, curiosity and some other, nameless physical requirements) brought me to what was then (and, is, perhaps now, still) the “C Store” in the charming community of Hamilton.

 I was thoroughly won over by the entire community package: historic structures, a quiet main street, mature shade trees, and (after spending a recent year in New York City) what I would have described as a quaint overall size. 

Though much smaller at that time (I think the population of the Town was around 750 in the late 1990’s), the Town reminded me – in multiple ways – of the small, midwestern ‘burg’ I had grown up in and around: at least some dirt roads (and many more scattered about the outskirts), an old-fashioned water tower, several iconic businesses that did not follow the pattern of any national chain, houses that were built with individual character (not part of a development), a Post Office visited by as much foot traffic as that from motor vehicles, and what I came to appreciate as a profound sense of just plain “peace and quiet.” 

The 18 months or so I eventually came to reside in Hamilton are forever etched in my inner memory book; I considered myself very fortunate (in those days) to have secured a series of rooms in a local landmark I came to call the “Edward Hopper House” just off North King Street – quite near the fire station. 

The apartment had a back porch which led to a rambling ravine (complete with wild raspberry and blackberry bushes!) which remained green seemingly all 12 months of the year; I had permission to garden (this, before I had discovered that Virginia clay is not Minnesota black soil), room to relax and a small Town in which to take exploratory afternoon walks. And this was at a time (prior to some of the developments about the community) when you could open the bedroom window and hear the ‘moo’ of milk cows – instead of the hiss of traffic, the roar of aircraft or the general buzz of a larger city. 

I recall days visiting the Community Park off Colonial Highway (Hamilton’s Main Street), walking in any direction: north, south, east or west – and just moving my feet until I’d reached the edge of Town (try that in Manhattan, unless you’re by the River!), and paying visits to the official Town Office, just a matter of yards from my front door. 

These simple acts were balm to the soul for one who’d lived far afield,
gathered much experience, and had now chosen to settle in a place I could live (at least for a while) with my own thoughts. I think in that short time of living in this small, Western Loudoun Town, I trod every street within the official limits- including Lakeview Cemetery, the Town Water facilities (without trespassing, I stress), and the highway underpasses on the north end of the residential area. 

The one winter in Hamilton (1999-2000, if I recall correctly) chilled to the bones of all concerned and dumped a very surprising amount of snow (the prior year, renting elsewhere in the area, I hardly noticed the season of what I would call ‘winter’), and the summer months I recall as extremely hot, humid and the definition of what we came to call ‘code red’ air days on the news. Yes, the elements were challenging during that time – but I still loved living in that imposing-looking mansion (at least to me) in that charming little Town. 

I worked hard, found acceptance and then grabbed the opportunity to buy a small home in Leesburg – but part of me will always reside in Hamilton, Virginia. And I still like it here.