Hammond is the largest city in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, United States of America. Hammond has a population of approximately 20.000 residents and an area of 12.8 square miles. The town rose to fame when NBC filmed the entire first season of In the Heat of the Night here. The city got its name from Peter Hammond, a Swedish immigrant who was actually named Peter av Hammerdal, but anglicized his name. He settled here in 1818 after escaping Dartmoor Prison, where he was incarcerated after the Napoleonic Wars. He started a plantation and he produced charcoal for the maritime industry of the main city in the area - New Orleans. If you want to visit this charming city, do not miss some of its great attractions.
Top Attractions within Hammond
Hammond Northshore Regional Airport or simply Hammond Airport, how it is called now, is a former detention camp. During World War II, prisoners from Nazi Germany were held here and the U.S. Army used this building and the areas surrounding the airport. Although the building of the airport was restored, all decorations were kept and you can see memorial plaques with the story of the detention camp of Hammond.
Southeastern Louisiana University is a public university that opened in Hammond in 1925. Now, the institution has more than 15.000 students from over 66 countries of the globe, but in 1925 this began as a local junior college.
Friendship Oak is located in the campus of the university and is the oldest tree in Hammond. The Friendship Oak is hundreds of years old and because it keeps growing, arborists are taking care of it, so the limbs of the oak do not grow into the ground.
Tangipahoa African American Heritage Museum is a Hammond museum located in Phoenix Square. It has three main buildings - the northern is a theater, the middle one has collections of African American items and the southern building has a banquet hall and conference facilities.
