Hamilton County, Tennessee

Hamilton County is a county in Tennessee, United States, anchored by the Tennessee River as it bends around Lookout Mountain near the Georgia border. It had a population of 366,207 at the 2020 census and covers 576 square miles (1,492 km2), of which 542 square miles is land and 33 square miles is water, centred near 35°11′N 85°10′W.

Chattanooga is the county seat; its postal code is 37402. Hamilton County has 7 cities, 3 towns, and several unincorporated communities and census-designated places, in the southeastern part of the state. It sits in the Eastern time zone, FIPS code 47065.

Towns & Villages in Hamilton County

Hamilton County has 10 incorporated municipalities — seven cities and three towns — plus a set of census-designated places (CDPs) and unincorporated communities without their own local government. The old page for this county listed roughly 250 residential subdivision names (things like “Auburn Hills” or “Cambridge Estates”) rather than distinct census places; those are neighborhoods within Chattanooga, Hixson, and other communities and are not carried over here (see notes).

Hamilton County is one of several counties nationwide named for Alexander Hamilton, so search results for “Hamilton County” often mix in Ohio, Indiana, Florida, and Illinois places — this page covers only the Tennessee county centred on Chattanooga.

ZIP Codes

• 37402 — Chattanooga (downtown)
• 37403, 37404, 37405, 37406, 37407, 37408, 37409, 37410, 37411, 37415, 37416, 37419, 37421, 37450 — Chattanooga (other stations)
• 37343 — Hixson (also serves Middle Valley)
• 37363 — Ooltewah
• 37379 — Soddy Daisy (also serves Lakesite)
• 37377 — Signal Mountain
• 37341 — Harrison
• 37302 — Apison
• 37373 — Sale Creek
• 37308 — Birchwood
• 37350 — Lookout Mountain (also serves Walden)
• 37351 — Lupton City
• 37304 — Bakewell
• 37315 — Collegedale (PO Box only)

A handful of small communities, such as Falling Water and Fairmount, share a Chattanooga or Hixson ZIP rather than having their own.

Geography

Hamilton County lies where the Tennessee River cuts through Lookout Mountain at the Tennessee River Gorge, at the southern end of the Cumberland Plateau’s Sequatchie Valley system. The Tennessee River and Chickamauga Lake, a reservoir behind Chickamauga Dam, dominate the county’s water; Signal Mountain and Walden’s Ridge rise on the north side of the river. The county shares borders with more counties than most in the country — ten in total, four of them across the Georgia state line.

Bledsoe County lies to the north, Rhea County and Meigs County to the northeast, Bradley County to the east, Whitfield County, Georgia to the southeast, Catoosa County, Georgia and Walker County, Georgia to the south, Dade County, Georgia to the southwest, Marion County to the west, and Sequatchie County to the northwest.

Demographics

Hamilton County had 366,207 residents at the 2020 census, making it Tennessee’s fourth-most populous county. Chattanooga, the county seat, is by far the largest community; Hixson, an unincorporated area north of the city, is the county’s second-largest population center. Median household income runs above the Tennessee median of $67,631 in most of the county’s suburbs, though it is lower in parts of Chattanooga itself. Population density is roughly 676 people per square mile of land.

Economy & Local Life

Chattanooga anchors the county’s economy as a logistics, insurance, and manufacturing hub. BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee and Unum both keep large corporate operations in the city, and Volkswagen operates an assembly plant at Enterprise South within the county. The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Erlanger Health System are major local employers. The Tennessee Aquarium and the annual Riverbend Festival on the Chattanooga riverfront draw regional visitors each summer.

History

Hamilton County was organized on October 25, 1819, and named for Alexander Hamilton, the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. Chattanooga grew around a Cherokee trading post and river crossing before becoming a Union-held rail and supply hub during the Civil War; the Battle of Chattanooga (1863) and the nearby Chickamauga campaign left the area with one of the country’s largest collections of preserved Civil War battlefield land, much of it just across the county line in Georgia.

Getting There

Interstates 24, 75, and 124 all pass through the county, along with US Routes 11, 27, 41, 64, 72, 74, 76, and 127.

• Knoxville — 110 miles northeast
• Atlanta, Georgia — 115 miles south
• Nashville — 135 miles northwest
• Huntsville, Alabama — 100 miles southwest

Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (CHA) is the county’s commercial airport. There is currently no scheduled Amtrak passenger service to Chattanooga.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Hamilton County, Tennessee?
It is in the southeastern corner of Tennessee, on the Georgia border, centred on Chattanooga and the Tennessee River.

What is the population of Hamilton County?
366,207 people at the 2020 census, making it Tennessee’s fourth-most populous county.

How big is Hamilton County?
576 square miles (1,492 km2), of which 33 square miles is water.

What is the county seat of Hamilton County?
Chattanooga is the county seat.

How many towns and cities are in Hamilton County?
Ten incorporated municipalities — seven cities and three towns — plus several unincorporated communities such as Hixson, Ooltewah, and Harrison.

What ZIP codes are in Hamilton County?
Chattanooga uses 37402 and about a dozen other codes; outlying communities include 37343 (Hixson), 37363 (Ooltewah), 37377 (Signal Mountain), and 37379 (Soddy Daisy).

Why is it called Hamilton County?
It was named in 1819 for Alexander Hamilton, the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Tennessee.