Hamilton, James, 1752-1819.

James Hamilton, an Irishman born around 1752, settled in Carlisle, Pennsylvania sometime before the Revolutionary War. He inherited the law firm of Robert Magaw, a Carlisle resident and the defender of Fort Washington during the war against the British. Hamilton served Cumberland County as a lawyer for many years and was soon elevated to the position of judge. In 1802, President Thomas Jefferson named him the deputy-attorney general of the Western District of Pennsylvania. Four years later, Hamilton became president judge of the Ninth Judicial District. He died in 1819, passing his legacy and interest in the law on to his son, James Hamilton Jr. The younger James Hamilton was born in 1793, spent his youth in schools near Philadelphia, and graduated from Dickinson College in 1812. He passed the bar in 1816 and inherited his father's firm upon his death in 1819. He spent the next two decades practicing law, but soon his interest in education and science eclipsed his law practice. He helped establish the public school system in Carlisle and served as head of the School Board of Directors. Like his father before him, he also served on the board of trustees for Dickinson College. James Hamilton Jr. died in 1873.