Hammond is a railroad town. Beginning in the 1830's as a settlement of Peter Hammond and his family, it was the coming of the New Orleans, Jackson and Great Northern Railroad that insured its existance in the coming years. The train's arrival in 1854 prompted land speculation and brought many new peole to the area. An early entrepreneur was Charles Emery Cate, who chose to settle in the area because of its beautiful ozone climate, natural spring water and thick pine forests. But he also found the area attractive as a location for a Confederate army shoe factory, in the isolated settlement, he could "make his Confederate shoes and for a time feel safe from the Yankees."

The factory was discovered and burned by Federal troops in 1862, but the settlers continued to establish their town. During the post war period the streets were laid out, and lined with oak trees. These trees remain today and make Hammond a distinctive and beautiful city.

Our city grew up around the junction of Thomas Steet and the railroad tracks, and the downtown became a shipping center for the prosperous timber industry. In the 1890's a hardy variety of strawberries was developed, and local farmers were able to ship their strawberry crops to points all over the nation form Downtown Hammond. As the farmers and merchants began to prosper, from their strawberry profits, they began to replace their Downtown wooden structures with proud brick buildings. These buildings have remained in Downtown Hammond through the years, and give it the unique flavor it has today.