Hammond
Description
(any race) 0.0% 0.5% 16.6% 34.1%
Hammond /ˈhæmənd/ is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 80,830 at the 2010 census, replacing Gary as the most populous city in Lake County.
Geography
Hammond is located at 41°36′40″N 87°29′35″W / 41.61111°N 87.49306°W / 41.61111; -87.49306 (41.611185, −87.493080).
The city's elevation above sea level ranges from 577 feet (176 m) to 610 feet (186 m). The city sits within the boundaries of the former Lake Chicago. Most of the city is on sandy soil with a layer of black topsoil that varies from non-existent to several feet (a meter or more) thick. Much of the exposed sand has been removed for purposes such as industrial use to make concrete and glass. According to the 2010 census, Hammond has a total area of 24.886 square miles (64.45 km2), of which 22.78 square miles (59.00 km2) (or 91.54%) is land and 2.106 square miles (5.45 km2) (or 8.46%) is water.
Lakes and rivers
- Grand Calumet River (partial)
- Lake George
- Lake Michigan (partial)
- Little Calumet River (partial)
- Oxbow Lake
- Wolf Lake (partial)
Adjacent cities, towns and villages
- Burnham, Illinois
- Calumet City, Illinois
- Chicago, Illinois
- Lansing, Illinois
- East Chicago
- Gary
- Griffith
- Highland
- Munster
- Whiting
History
The first permanent residents arrived around 1847 to settle on land between the Grand and Little Calumet rivers, on the south end of Lake Michigan. Those first residents were German farmers newly arrived from Europe looking for land and opportunity. Before that time, the area was a crossroad for Indian tribes, explorers, stagecoach lines and supply lines to the West. Convenient location and abundant fresh water from Lake Michigan led to the beginning of Hammond's industrialization in 1869 with the George H. Hammond Company meat-packing plant following merchants and farmers to the area. Hammond was incorporated on April 21, 1884, and was named after the Detroit butcher. Hammond is one of the oldest cities in Lake County, with Crown Point being the oldest, established in 1834. According to the Encyclopedia of Chicago, George Henry Hammond, a pioneer in the use of refrigerated railcars for the transport of fresh meat, first used this method with his small packing company in Detroit, Michigan. In 1868, Hammond received a patent for a refrigerator car design. In the early 1870s, he built a new plant in northern Indiana along the tracks of the Michigan Central Railroad. By 1873, the George H. Hammond Co. was selling $1 million worth of meat a year; by 1875, sales were nearly $2 million. The company's large packing house in Hammond—the town had taken the name of its most powerful resident—rivaled those located at the Union Stock Yard in Chicago. By the middle of the 1880s, when it built a new plant in Omaha, Nebraska, Hammond was slaughtering over 100,000 cattle a year and owned a fleet of 800 refrigerator cars. After Hammond died in 1886, the company became less important and no longer challenged the giant Chicago packers, who acquired Hammond at the turn of the century and merged it into their National Packing Co.
On June 22, 1918, the Hammond circus train wreck occurred about 5.5 miles (8.9 km) east of the city, killing 86 and injuring 127 persons.
According to the 1960 U.S. Census Hammond's population reached a record high of 111,698 residents.
National Register of Historic Places
The following single properties and national historic districts are listed on the National Register of Historic Places:
- Morse Dell Plain House and Garden
- Forest-Ivanhoe Residential Historic District
- Forest-Moraine Residential Historic District
- Forest-Southview Residential Historic District
- Glendale Park Historic District
- Hohman Avenue Commercial Historic District
- Indi-Illi Park Historic District
- Northern States Life Insurance Company
- Pullman-Standard Historic District
- Roselawn-Forest Heights Historic District
- Southmoor Apartment Hotel
- State Bank of Hammond Building
- State Street Commercial Historic District
- George John Wolf House
Major businesses
According to the city, those businesses employing 200 or more employees in Hammond are:
# Employer # of employees 1 School City of Hammond 2,418 2 Horseshoe Casino 2,094 3 St. Margaret Mercy Healthcare 1,588 4 Lear Seating Corporation 783 5 City of Hammond 760 6 Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad 756 7 Walmart 531 8 Contract Services Group 300 9 Strack and Van Til 284 10 Cargill 256 11 Unilever 252 12 Morrison Construction Company 235 13 Cabela's 214Public libraries
Hammond Public Library, located at 564 State Street, includes the Suzanne G. Long Local History Room. The system used to operate the E.B. Hayward Branch at 1212 172nd Street and the Howard Branch at 7047 Grand Avenue. Both branches have since been closed.
City government
Hammond is incorporated as a city under Indiana law. It therefore has a mayor and a nine-member city council. Hammond's City Hall is located at 5925 Calumet Avenue. The Hammond City Council has meetings scheduled for the second and fourth Mondays of each month.
The city maintains a city court on the second floor of the City Hall, exercising a limited jurisdiction within Lake County. The court handles not only local ordinance violations and certain minor criminal matters, but also a significant portion of the debt collection and eviction actions brought in Lake County.
City Council:
- Michael Opinker (D, 5th), President
- Robert A. Markovich (D, At Large)
- Daniel P. Spitale (D, At Large)
- Janet Venecz (D, At Large)
- Mark Kalwinski (D, 1st)
- Jack Uylaki (D, 2nd)
- Anthony W. Higgs (D, 3rd)
- William Emerson, Sr. (D, 4th)
- Homero "Chico" Hinojosa, Jr. (D, 6th)
Mayor:
- Thomas M. McDermott, Jr. (D)
City Officials:
- Robert J. Golec (D) – City Clerk
- (current vacant) – City Judge
- Heather Garay – City Controller
- John D. Doughty – Police Chief
- Jeffery C. Smith – Fire Chief