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Hammond, Indiana
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Hammond 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.
ond is located at (41.611185, -87.493080).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 24.8 square miles (64.3 km²), of which, 22.9 square miles (59.3 km²) of it is land and 2.0 square miles (5.1 km²) of it (7.85%) is water.
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Encyclopedia
Hammond 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 (41.611185, -87.493080).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 24.8 square miles (64.3 km²), of which, 22.9 square miles (59.3 km²) of it is land and 2.0 square miles (5.1 km²) 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 and rivers
- Lake George
- Lake Michigan (partial)
- Oxbow Lake
- Wolf Lake (partial)
- Grand Calumet River (partial)
- Little Calumet River (partial)
Adjacent cities, towns and villages
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 83,048 people, 32,026 households, and 20,880 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,630.0 people per square mile (1,401.4/km²). There were 34,139 housing units at an average density of 1,492.2/sq mi (576.1/km²). 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. Whites with no Hispanic or Latino ancestry were 62.40% 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.
Cityscape
- Glendale Park
- Harrison Park
- Jacob's Square
- East Hammond
- Hessville
- North Hammond
- South Hammond
- Forest-Ivanhoe
- Indi-Illi Park
- Columbia Center
- Meadows
- Woodmar
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.
Infrastructure
Transportation
Most of Hammond's streets are laid out in a grid pattern similar to Chicago's streets. While Madison Street in Chicago acts as the reference point for north-south street numbering the first "1" is removed; this makes what would be a five digit address number in Illinois into a four digit address number in Hammond. The state line is used as the reference point for east-west street numbering.
Cities and towns also using the Hammond numbering system are Whiting, Munster and Highland. Dyer also uses the Hammond numbering system but the first number removed from the north-south streets is a "2," as by that point the Illinois numbers start across the state line start with the number 2 (Munster's Street numbers start with a "1" north of the Dyer line, making them 5 digits); and East Chicago uses the canal running down the middle of the city as the east-west reference point while following Hammond's lead for the north-south street numbers.
- 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 on Hohman Avenue 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.
- Public Transportation is provided by the Hammond Transit System, which operates six fixed-route bus lines for the city that traverses major routes and neighboring towns. Paratransit service is also offered by the system.
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 1990s. 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.
- 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.
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 G.H. Hammond Company packing house following merchants and farmers to the area. Hammond was incorporated on April 21, 1884. Hammond is one of the oldest cities in Lake County, with Crown Point being the oldest, established in 1834.
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.
The Flag of Hammond depicts the Grand Calumet River and the Little Calumet River.
Major Businesses
*Cargill
- Dietrich Industries (steel framing)
- Horseshoe Casino
- Lear Corporation (auto interiors)
- Unilever
- Jupiter Aluminum
- Tortilla Nuevo Leon (tortilla producer)
- Cabelas
Education
Primary and secondary schools
Hammond is served by the School City of Hammond, a school corporation under Indiana state law that is independent of the civil city.
Privately owned and operated schools include:
- Bishop Noll Institute
- Bishop Noll Prep Academy (Junior High)
- Chicago Baptist Academy
- Montessori Children's Schoolhouse
- St. Casimir
- St. Catherine of Siena
- St. John Bosco
- St. John the Baptist
Colleges and Universities
Public libraries
Hammond Public Library operates the Main Library, which includes the Suzanne G. Long Local History Room, at 564 State Street. In addition the system operates the E. B. Hayward Branch at 1212 172nd Street and the Howard Branch at 7047 Grand Avenue.
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 .
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.
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 Kim Poland
- 5th District Daniel C. Repay
- 6th District Homero "Chico" Hinojosa
City Officials
- Barbra Cardwell - City Controller
- James Callhan - Building Commissioner
- Brian Miller - Police Chief
- David Hamm - Fire Chief
The Mayor is Thomas McDermott Jr.. He is the son of former mayor Thomas McDermott Sr.
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
Police Department - Fallen Officers
In the history of the Hammond Police Department, seven officers have died in the line of duty.
| Officer | Date of death | Age | Tenure | Cause of death |
|---|
| | October 9, 1929 | 33 | 6 years | Gunfire | | | May 16, 1937 | 65 | 36 years | Vehicular assault | | | January 11, 1947 | 36 | 1 year | Gunfire | | | January 13, 1947 | 22 | 1 week | Gunfire | | | June 1, 1961 | 43 | 10 years | Gunfire | | | November 14, 1980 | 33 | 6 years | Gunfire | | | December 29, 1984 | 47 | — | Gunfire (Accidental) | |
Sports
The Hammond Pros (1920-1926)
The Hammond Pros 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 nine African-American players, 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
- Dodie Bellamy - Author
- Stephan Bonnar - UFC Ultimate Fighter
- Jayne Boyd and Joan Boyd - original "Doublemint Twins" in ads for Doublemint gum
- 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"
- Khari Jones - football player in the Canadian Football League, television commentator
- Joseph F. Meyer - horticulturist, herbalist, founder of the Indiana Botanic Gardens
- 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 writer and narrator of the film A Christmas Story (1983)
- Bobby Skafish - Chicagoland radio personality
- Jimmy Valiant - professional wrestler
- Lois V. Vierk - music composer of the post-minimalist and totalist schools
- Tim McKinney - Amercian Actor, Producer.
Sister cities
Famous Hammond Indiana Train Show
Tourists from all over the world travel to the famous jean shepherd center where one can find the famous train show. It has been rated by critics as the second greatest show on earth. Besides the drive in theatre featuring ice age, one can find a farm as well as the local roller rink. An abundant amount of pride and money is spent on this world famous attraction and its all worth it just to see the children smile when the train rolls around.
Future plans for the train show include the expansion to three rails. Execution by year 2012
External links
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