167 Samuel Hamilton

Biography

Inside forward Samuel Hamilton was born in Belfast and played for Ireland’s schoolboys side as a youngster. He started his footballing career at Irish lower league sides in rose to Irish League side Bangor for the 1922/23 season Hamilton joined Hull City in August 1923 and his first season was spent in City’s Reserves. He broke into the Tigers’ first team in September 1924 and was a regular partner for striker Paddy Mills for much of the 1924/25 season. He scored his first City goal against Fulham in September 1924 and hit a brace in a January 1925 5-0 victory over Crystal Palace.

He missed the last few games of the 1924/25 season due a nasal complaint that he found debilitating. During the close season had an operation in Hull, complications required a second operation and after seemingly starting to make a recovery he tragically died on 6 August 1925 at Eagleton House, a Hull nursing home on Park Street. He died two years to the day after his brother David died in Belfast at the age of just eighteen. Manager Bill McCracken arranged a benefit match for Hamilton in September 1925 that raised funds for his wife and his mother, both of whom Samuel supported with his wage as a professional footballer.

Outside of wartime, Sam Hamilton was the first and, as of 2026, only Hull City footballer to lose his life while on the club’s books.

Details

Nationality: Northern Ireland
Date/Place of Birth: 2 May 1902, Belfast
Hull City First Game: 13 September 1924, Crystal Palace A (Division Two), 22 years, 134 days old
Hull City Final Game: 25 April 1925, Sheffield Wednesday A (Division Two), 22 years, 358 days old

Clubs

Castlereagh (1920), Mountpottinger (1920-1921), Dundela (1921-1922), Bangor (1922-1923), Hull City (1923-1925)

Hull City Record

Career: 31 apps, 8 goals