The Hamilton Watch Company was founded in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1892. It was named after Andrew Hamilton, the founder of the Lancaster Watch Company and the original owner of the factory Hamilton was based in.

The company started out producing pocket watches which were widely respected for their reliability and accuracy, so much so, that they gained over half of the market share during the expansion of the US railroad system.

After WW1, the company shifted its focus to the production of wrist watches, which were becoming more popular. In 1940, Hamilton Watch closed its doors to consumer sales and concentrated exclusively on developing watches for the military. Over the course of WW2, it produced close to one million individual pieces.

After the war was over Hamilton returned to producing consumer products, then in the 1960's it purchased the Buren Watch Company and started incorporating Swiss movements into its American watches. This Swiss-American partnership lasted until 1972 when Buren returned to Swiss ownership and 2 years later the Hamilton brand was purchased by SSIH, which later became the Swatch Group.

Today, Hamilton is a subsidiary of the Swatch Group, producing watches with a perfect mix of the American spirit and Swiss precision.