Hammond

 

City (1990 pop. 84,236), Lake co., extreme NW Ind., bounded by Lake Michigan, the Ill. state line, and the Little Calumet River, and traversed by the Grand Calumet River; settled 1851, inc. 1884. Originally important as a slaughterhouse site, Hammond was a meatpacking town until its great packing house was destroyed by fire in 1901. Manufactures include foods, fabricated metal and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery, and transportation equipment. It has secondary steel processing and fire brick refractories. A campus of Purdue Univ. is there.

City of Hammond, Indiana
Flag Seal
Location in the state of Indiana
Coordinates: 41°36′40″N 87°29′35″W / 41.61111, -87.49306
Country	United States
State	Indiana
County	Lake
Incorporated	1884
Government
- Mayor	Thomas McDermott, Jr.
Area
- City	sq mi (km²)
- Land	sq mi ( km²)
- Water	sq mi ( km²)
Elevation	ft ( m)
Population (2000)
- City
- Density	/sq mi (/km²)
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Area code(s)	219
FIPS code	18-310002
GNIS feature ID	04356583
Website: http://www.gohammond.com/

Hammond (IPA: [ˈhæ.mənd]) is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 83,048 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Hammond is located at 41°36′40″N, 87°29′35″W (41.611185, -87.493080)¹.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 64.3 km² (24.8 mi²). 59.3 km² (22.9 mi²) of it is land and 5.1 km² (2.0 mi²) of it (7.85%) is water. The city's elevation above sea level is 176 m – 186 m (577 ft – 610 ft). 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.

Lakes

• George Lake
• Lake Michigan (partial)
• Oxbow Lake
• Wolf Lake (partial)

Rivers

• Grand Calumet River (partial)
• Little Calumet River (partial)

Adjacent cities, towns and villages

• Burnham, Illinois
• Calumet City, Illinois
• Chicago, Illinois
• Gary, Indiana
• Highland, Indiana
• East Chicago, Indiana
• Munster, Indiana
• Whiting, Indiana

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 83,048 people, 32,026 households, and 20,880 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,401.4/km² (3,630.0/mi²). There were 34,139 housing units at an average density of 576.1/km² (1,492.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 72.35% White, 14.57% African American, 0.41% Native American, 0.46% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 9.32% from other races, and 2.81% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 21.04% of the population.

Ancestries: German (14.0%), Polish (12.3%), Irish (11.6%), English (4.7%), Slovak (3.9%), United States (3.9%).

There were 32,026 households out of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.9% were married couples living together, 16.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.8% were non-families. 29.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.23.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.3% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $35,528, and the median income for a family was $42,221. Males had a median income of $35,778 versus $25,180 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,254. About 12.0% of families and 14.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.7% of those under age 18 and 9.3% of those age 65 or over.

Neighborhoods of Hammond, Indiana

• Central Hammond

• Glendale Park
• Harrison Park
• Jacob's Square
• East Hammond

• Hessville
• North Hammond
• South Hammond

• Forest-Ivanhoe
• Indi-Illi Park
• Columbia Center
• Meadows
• Woodmar

• Robertsdale

The Whiting post office (46394) serves not only the City of Whiting but also this adjacent Hammond neighborhood of Robertsdale, immediately to the west of Whiting. Addresses in this Hammond neighborhood show “Whiting, Indiana.” While not legally a part of the City of Whiting, locally the area has long been informally considered to be a culturally integrated part of Whiting. References to Whiting businesses or residents often include those technically from Hammond’s Robertsdale.^[1][2][3]

Infrastructure

Transportation

See also: Hammond-Whiting (Amtrak station)

Most of Hammond's streets are laid out in a grid pattern similar to Chicago's streets. The street numbering and lot numbering is similar to Chicago's, with Madison Street in Chicago being the reference point for north-south street numbering. Hammond is different from most cities and towns in Lake County, as it does not have its street numbers and addresses based on the Gary, Indiana system.

• I-90 - Indiana Toll Road, exits:

• Indianapolis Boulevard - U.S. Route 12/U.S. Route 20/U.S. Route 41
• Cline Avenue - Indiana State Route 912
• Calumet Avenue - U.S. Route 41

• I-80/94 - Borman Expressway, exits:

• Calumet Avenue (U.S. 41 North)
• Indianapolis Boulevard (U.S. 41 South, Indiana 152)
• Kennedy Avenue
• Cline Avenue (Indiana 912)

• The South Shore Electric Line, a Chicago to South Bend, Indiana commuter rail line, has a station in Hammond. It is operated by NICTD.
• Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides twice-daily service in both directions, operating its Wolverine through the Hammond-Whiting stop between Chicago and Pontiac, Michigan, just north of Detroit. Baggage on Amtrak cannot be checked at this location; however, up to two suitcases in addition to any "personal items" such as briefcases, purses, laptop bags, and infant equipment are allowed on board as carry-ons.
• The nearest commercial airport is Gary/Chicago International Airport in Gary.

Medical centers and hospitals

The only hospital in Hammond is St. Margaret Mercy Healthcare Center, North campus. The hospital lies on Stateline Road, across the street from the Illinois city of Calumet City. The hospital was founded late in 1898 and was originally called St. Margaret Hospital. It merged with Our Lady Of Mercy Hospital in Dyer, Indiana, in the 1990's. The two hospitals became "campuses" of a new entity called Saint Margaret Mercy Medical Center and Hospital, part of the Sisters of St. Francis Health Services. It serves northwest Indiana and south suburban Chicago.

Utilities

• Electricity - Nearly all of the electricity used in Hammond is produced by Nipsco, a NiSource company.
  

  

  The State Line Generating Plant in Robertsdale
• Natural gas - Nearly all of the natural gas used in Hammond is produced by Nipsco, a NiSource company.
• Water - Water service for nearly all consumers of water in the city is provided by the Hammond Water Department, a state owned utility that is operated by the civil city government.
• Telephone

• SBC (now AT&T) supplies land line telephone service to nearly all households in the city.

Cellular phone services are provided by:

• Cingular Wireless
• Nextel
• Sprint Nextel
• U.S. Cellular
• T-Mobile
• Verizon Wireless

• Internet - broadband services are provided by:

• Comcast - cable
• SBC - DSL (now AT&T)
• Wide Open West - cable

• Cable television companies operating in Hammond include:

• Comcast
• Wide Open West

History of Hammond, Indiana

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 G.H. Hammond Company packing house following merchants and farmers to the area. Hammond was incorporated on April 21, 1884. Hammond is the oldest city in Lake County.

On June 22, 1918, the Hammond circus train wreck occurred about 5 1/2 miles 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.

Hammond is also the home of The First Baptist Church of Hammond, one of the nation's largest congregations.

Population recorded through its history [1]

• 1880 - 699
• 1890 - 5,248
• 1900 - 12,376
• 1910 - 20,925
• 1920 - 36,004
• 1930 - 65,559
• 1940 - 70,183
• 1950 - 87,595
• 1960 - 111,698
• 1970 - 107,983
• 1980 - 91,985
• 1990 - 84,236
• 2000 - 83,048

The Hammond Pros (1920-1926)

The Hammond Professionals was one of the country's earliest professional football teams. When the American Professional Football League was formed in 1920, the Hammond Pros was a charter member, as it also was when the league changed its name to National Football League in 1922. However, four years later, when the NFL decided to reduce the number of teams, it did so by simply folding smaller franchises and the Hammond Pros was one of the teams folded.

During the six years the Hammond Pros team was in existence, the NFL had six African-American players, all six of whom played for the Pros. The NFL's first African-American head coach was Hall-of-Famer coach Fritz Pollard of the Pros.

Notable natives and residents

• Robert K. Abbett - artist, illustrator
• Michael Badnarik - Libertarian Party 2004 presidential candidate
• Jayne Boyd and Joan Boyd - original "Doublemint Twins"
• Darrel Chaney - baseball player
• Denny Clanton - soccer player
• Irv Cross, NFL player and commentator
• Alberta Darling - Wisconsin state senator
• Danelle Folta - actress, model, Playboy April 1995 Playmate of the month
• Dory Funk - professional wrestler fighting under both his real name and as "The Outlaw"
• Ric Jilla - rapper
• Khari Jones - football player in the Canadian Football League, television commentator
• Joseph F. Meyer - horticulturist, herbalist, founder of the Indiana Botanic Gardens
• Edward C. Minas - founder of Hammond-based Edward C. Minas Company retail stores
• Fritz Pollard - born Chicago, first black NFL head coach for the now-defunct Hammond Pros
• Alvah C. Roebuck - born Lafayette, Indiana, founded Sears, Roebuck and Company
• Scott Sheldon - Major League Baseball player
• Jean Shepherd - born Chicago, raised in Hammond, TV and radio personality, best known as narrator for the film A Christmas Story (1983)
• Bobby Skafish - Chicagoland radio personality
• Jacqueline Ullstam- BIC (and BIC Ultra) Owner/Inventor
• Jimmy Valiant - professional wrestler
• Lois V. Vierk - music composer of the post-minimalist and totalist schools
• Stephan Bonner - UFC Ultimate Fighter
• Anastasia Weidner - Math Bowl Champion in 2005

Major Businesses

• Cargill
• Dietrich Industries (steel framing)
• Horseshoe Casino
• Lear Corporation (auto interiors)
• Unilever

Education

K-12

Hammond has four state run high schools that are operated by the School City of Hammond, a school corporation under Indiana state law that is independent of the civil city.

• George Rogers Clark Middle/High School
• Gavit Middle/High School
• Hammond Area Career Center
• Hammond High School
• Morton High School

• Eggers Middle School
• Irving Middle School
• Scott Middle School
• Spohn Middle School

• Caldwell Elementary School
• Columbia Elementary School
• Edison Elementary School
• Franklin Elementary School
• Harding Elementary School
• Irving Elementary School
• Jefferson Elementary School
• Kenwood Elementary School
• Lafayette Elementary School
• Lincoln Elementary School
• Maywood Elementary School
• Morton Elementary School
• O'Bannon Elementary School
• Orchard Drive Elementary School
• Wallace Elementary School

Privately owned and operated schools include:

• Bishop Noll Institute
• Bishop Noll Junior High
• City Baptist High School
• Chicago Baptist Academy
• St. Casimir
• St. Catherine of Siena
• St. John Bosco

Colleges and Universities

• Calumet College of St. Joseph- privately owned
• Purdue University Calumet - state owned
• Kaplan College - privately owned

City Government

Hammond is incorporated as a city under Indiana law. It therefore has a mayor and a 9 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^[4], 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.

Councilmen at Large

• Robert A. Markovich
• JoAnn Matonovich
• Kathleen Pucalik

District Councilmen

• 1st District Mark Kalwinski
• 2nd District Alfonso L. Salinas
• 3rd District Anthony W. Higgs
• 4th District Cynthia Berdine-Matasovsky
• 5th District Daniel C. Repay
• 6th District Homero "Chico" Hinojosa

James Callhan Building Commissioner Barbra Cardwell City Controller Brian Miller Police Chief David Hamm Fire Chief

The Mayor is Thomas McDermott Junior. He is the son of former mayor Thomas McDermott Senior.

Past Mayors

• 1884 to 1888 Marcus Towle - Republican
• 1888 to 1893 Thomas Hammond - Democrat
• 1893 to 1894 Patrick Reilly - Democrat
• 1894 to 1898 Fred R. Mott - Republican
• 1898 to 1902 Patrick Reilly - Democrat
• 1902 to 1904 Armanis F. Knotts - Republican
• 1904 to 1911 Lawrence Becker - Democrat
• 1911 to 1918 John D. Smalley - Democrat
• 1918 to 1925 Daniel Brown - Republican
• 1925 to 1930 Adrian E. Tinkham - Republican
• 1930 to 1935 Charles O. Schonert - Republican
• 1935 to 1942 Frank Martin - Democrat
• 1942 to 1948 G. Bertram Smith - Democrat
• 1948 to 1956 Vernon C. Anderson - Republican
• 1956 to 1968 Edward Dowling - Democrat
• 1968 to 1976 Joseph Klen - Democrat
• 1976 to 1984 Edward J. Raskosky - Democrat
• 1984 to 1992 Thomas M. McDermott Sr. - Republican
• 1992 to 2004 Duane Dedelow, Jr - Republican
• 2004 to Date Thomas M. McDermott Jr. - Democrat

Sports

• Past Teams
  • Hammond Rollers, American Basketball Association team founded in 2006, and was sold to the owner of the Quad City Riverhawks the same year. The team is now known as the Sauk Valley Rollers of Rock Falls, Illinois.
  • Hammond Professionals, football team (1920-1926)

References

External links

• Online City Guide
• Hammond Picture Postcards

Coordinates: 41.611185° N 87.49308° W

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