Francis & Betty Hamilton Memorial Scholarship Fund

Year Founded

1999

Purpose of Fund

The primary purpose of the Fund shall be to provide educational financial support to a qualifying Greencastle High School graduate and Putnam County resident, accepted into pre-law or law school at Indiana University. It is understood that scholarship recipients cannot be members or family members of advisory committees or Foundation board members.

History of Fund

Judge Francis N. Hamilton loved Greencastle and Putnam County where he lived his entire life. He believed in service to his community and giving back so that others could succeed. The last 18 years of his 50-year law career, were spent in service as the longest sitting Putnam County Circuit Court judge. Judge Hamilton was known for his strictness, but also for his fairness and deep sense of caring. He wished to help others learn to do what was right and to have a second chance at a successful life. During his final years, Judge Hamilton had two simple wishes: to be buried in Portland Mills Cemetery where several generations of his family are buried, and to create a scholarship fund for local students who might pursue a legal career and serve the Greencastle community. Family members shared that dream and created the Francis N. Hamilton Memorial Scholarship Fund following his death in 1999.