Hamilton Supply is a third generation business that opened in 1969 at 257 Butternut Street. Founder, D.C. Hamilton, had worked for Hoppe Auto Electric, which carried Briggs & Stratton engines and other parts for lawn care equipment. When Briggs & Stratton spun off its goods from automotive parts distributors, company representatives asked D.C. to start a distribution center in Abilene. With three employees, one of whom was a mechanic, Hamilton Supply began distributing small engine parts to area dealers within a 100 mile radius. When he used a part for the shop he would keep the empty box and put it back on the shelf making his inventory look larger than it was. In 1972 the business had grown and D.C. called on his son Fred to come back to Abilene and join the family business. Fred left his job as a principal and head girls basketball coach in Loop, Texas, located in Gaines County. Fred took over the daily operations of the business while D.C. continued to travel calling on the dealers. David, (Fred's son) grew up in the business working in the summer after school and in 1981 started calling on the dealers full time. In 1983 they purchased some land on East Highway 80 and built a new building; still in distribution, they needed to be near the post office and bus station because of the amount of shipping required. In the early 90’s the distribution channels began to change. The manufacturers needed to eliminate a discount level and decided that the service distributer would be the most practical level to eliminate. So the Hamilton’s had to decide whether to find something else to distribute or to branch off into retail. The choice was made to go into the retail business which is where they are today. D.C. died in 2004 at age 91; Fred died in 2006 at age 68. David now runs the daily operations with his mother, Ann, in the office taking care of the books. They have nine employees, five of whom are mechanics, and they sell and service all types of outdoor power equipment. Residential and commercial mowers, string trimmers, chainsaws, hedge clippers, tillers, lawn vacuums, water pumps, generators, log splitters, chippers, and even Holland Grills. For the do-it-yourselfers, they sell all types of parts for lawn equipment and small engines. David said, “I have tried to get the very best, quality equipment available, sell it for a reasonable price and be prepared to service it in the shop.”