(Undated)– A former northwest Iowa judge has passed away. The Honorable Tom Hamilton died of natural causes on December 23rd, 2025, in Arizona where he had been spending the winter and was in hospice care. He was 93.
Hamilton attended Hartley schools and upon graduating went to the University of Iowa where he graduated from law school in 1957. He returned to Hartley and operated a private law firm. Hamilton was a member of the American Bar Association and Iowa State Bar Association and served on the Board of Governors of the latter. He was also a Director of the Iowa State Bar Foundation.
In 1976 Hamilton was appointed by Governor Robert Ray as a District Court Judge for the the then newly-created Judicial District 3A , comprised of 10 counties in northwest Iowa. Judge Hamilton served 27 years, including since 1995 as a Senior District Judge, retiring in 2003 after which he served occasionally as an independent mediator.
No formal services are planned, per his wishes, however a celebration of life will be held in the Iowa Great Lakes this coming summer.
