Best Web Design in Hamilton, ON (2026)

Web Design for Hamilton, Ontario

Hamilton is a port city at the western end of Lake Ontario, wrapped around a harbour and split in two by the Niagara Escarpment that locals simply call 'the Mountain.' Long known as Canada's Steel City for the Stelco and Dofasco mills that once made most of the country's steel, it has more than 100 waterfalls pouring off the escarpment and a scrappy arts and music scene centred on James Street North. It is also the birthplace of the first Tim Hortons and home of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.

AppWT works with Hamilton, ON businesses from Livonia, Michigan, mostly online and travelling as needed.

About Hamilton

Also known as. Steel City / Steeltown. The Hammer. The Ambitious City. The Birmingham of Canada.

History. The city is named for George Hamilton, who laid out the original townsite in 1815 on a sloping plain between the harbour and the Niagara Escarpment. The opening of the Burlington Canal in 1830 linked Hamilton Harbour to Lake Ontario and drove rapid growth as a port and rail centre. Hamilton was incorporated as a city in 1846. The steel industry took shape in the late 19th century, and by 1910 the two giants Stelco (Steel Company of Canada) and Dofasco (Dominion Foundries and Steel) dominated production. In September 2014 US Steel Canada (the former Stelco) sought bankruptcy protection and moved to close its Hamilton operations, accelerating a shift toward service and health-science sectors during the 2010s.

Local economy. Hamilton was long known as the Steel Capital of Canada; at its peak about 60% of Canada's steel was produced there by Stelco and Dofasco. Its industrial rise was fueled by proximity to coal, iron ore and abundant water from Lake Ontario, plus port and rail access. The 2010s brought a pivot toward health and life sciences, education and services as heavy steelmaking contracted. McMaster University is a major research institution and employer in the city. The very first Tim Hortons opened in Hamilton at 65 Ottawa Street North on 17 May 1964, founded by NHL player Tim Horton.

Culture and community. The rock band Arkells formed in Hamilton and is named after Arkell Street near McMaster University, where the members lived and studied. Teenage Head, formed in Hamilton in 1975, were pioneers of Canadian punk rock. Supercrawl, a large art and indie-music festival, takes over James Street North each September, and the city also runs the Hamilton Film Festival. Live music runs from arena shows at FirstOntario Centre to smaller rooms like Bridgeworks, Mills Hardware and the Corktown Pub. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats play in the Canadian Football League, and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame is located at their Tim Hortons Field stadium. The dining scene is multicultural, ranging from Syrian mezze to farm-to-table menus, with Ottawa Street and James Street North as food-and-arts hubs.

What makes Hamilton distinct. Hamilton has more than 100 waterfalls (over 150 by some counts) cascading off the Niagara Escarpment, earning it the title 'Waterfall Capital of the World'. The Niagara Escarpment splits the city into 'lower city' and 'the Mountain', and the escarpment is a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve. The world's first Tim Hortons opened in Hamilton in 1964 and still serves coffee at the original Ottawa Street North site. The 19th-century boosters' nickname 'the Ambitious City' has stuck for more than a century, alongside 'the Hammer' and 'the Birmingham of Canada'. The Canadian Football Hall of Fame calls Hamilton home, fitting for one of the CFL's oldest franchises.

Hamilton Landmarks and Local Life

• Dundurn Castle - an 1830s neoclassical mansion of about 40 rooms that was home to Sir Allan MacNab
• The Royal Botanical Gardens - Canada's largest botanical garden, straddling Hamilton and Burlington
• African Lion Safari - a drive-through wildlife park home to lions, elephants and giraffes
• Webster's Falls and Albion Falls - two of the region's most popular waterfalls
• The Bruce Trail - whose route follows the Niagara Escarpment through Hamilton on its way from Niagara to Tobermory
• The Art Gallery of Hamilton - holding a collection of more than 10,000 works