Dry open places, especially barrens with jack pine and oak, but also prairie-like ground, thin soil over limestone (Drummond Island), and sandy banks. This species ranges from the Great Lakes region to Iowa. Collections from southern Michigan are almost all quite old (Oakland Co. 1849–1896; Washtenaw Co. in 1867; Jackson Co. 1894–1896; St. Clair Co. in 1904; Berrien Co. in 1932; and Kalamazoo Co. 1931–1939), and the species is now very rare in this part of the state. The plant is locally more frequent in the jack pine areas of the northern Lower Peninsula, and rosettes of spiny leaves, the plants to bloom another year, are often conspicuous in grassy openings.

Rosettes of this species grow vegetatively for some years before flowering; the flowering stems dying after fruiting. However, the species produces new rosettes from root buds, sometimes removed considerably (1-2 m) from the flowering stem, and may eventually form extensive clones 

A number of recent authors treat this taxon as subsp. hillii (Canby) R. J. Moore & Frankton or var. hillii (Canby) B. Boivin of the more eastern and southern C. pumilum (Nutt.) Spreng. All reports of C. pumilum from Michigan refer to this taxon, whatever rank one prefers for it.

Named after the prolific collector Ellsworth J. Hill (1833-1917), who collected extensively in Michigan from 1871 to 1913. However, this species was described from Illinois.