City of Hammond

The largest municipality in the parish is named after Peter Hammond, a Swedish adventurer who was the first settler in the area. The economic story of Hammond began in 1860 when C.E. Cate bought land and constructed a home as well as a shoe factory, tannery and a sawmill. Soon after the Civil War he laid out the town and other light industries and merchandising businesses quickly made Hammond a commercial center for the area. In 1893 a Colonel Henry Robinson built the first of three magnificent hotels on a site facing the railroad tracks near the middle of town. The town became a popular stop for northern visitors who came south for the winter months and for New Orleaneans who wanted to escape Yellow Fever season during the summer.

The railroad comes through Hammond, La. in Tangipahoa Parish, which becomes a shoemaking center for the Confederacy during the Civil War. Town was planned in the 1860s, and by the early twentieth century was known as the Strawberry Capital of America.

Hammond was the first Strawberry Capital of the area. Boxcar loads of the produce were shipped north from the city until competition from California and other states decreased market share.

Hammond is probably the smallest city at an intersection of two major interstate highways, but the diversity of commerce and industry in the city is a welcome contrast to its size.

Altitude: 25 feet msl
Type of Government: Mayor and Council of 5 Home Rule Charter
Fire Department: 51 full time, 30 vol.
Fire Rating: 4 in city, 6 in surrounding areas.
Hospital: Seventh Ward General, Westpark Community
Recreation & Culture: Boating, fishing, hunting; country club, golf course, 4 tennis courts; 3 ball fields and 5 parks, 1 swimming pool; 6 movie theaters, art museum, dinner theater.
Hotels: 3