Echoes From The Attic and Poems, Hammond Freight Depot, Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana Submitted to the USGenWeb Archives by Don Johnson, Feb. 2001 Typed by Belford Carver Written by by Edna F. Campbell Copyrighted by Edna F. Campbell With special thanks to her family for permission to use her works. ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************ MANY HAMMOND MEMORIES GO DOWN WITH OLD DEPOT "The only glamor left in the old freight depot," predicted to the doom of demolishment shortly, "is in the lumber", commented Jack Bahm, an old timer of the area. Bahm recalls boarding the train here on the Illinois Central Railroad when about four years of age. The landmark building, said to have been the very first passenger and freight depot in Hammond, has been used as a warehouse by Jack Mashburn during its last years. The original setting was at the Thomas Street Crossing near the location of the present Chamber of Commerce building. Some of the veteran employees include C. J. Rand, freight agent, Jack Mashburn Sr., passenger agent, and Robert Dunn, cashier men who served in early years and who are now deceased. An employee who served for 47 years with the company and many in the freight office is Miss Lula Hyde of Hammond. Bahm is a firm believer in the Illinois Central Railroad. He feels the railroad played a major part in building Hammond. The trains brought in early settlers, he said, many coming with the Iowa development, others from Minnesota, and a large group of Seventh Day Baptists who built the second church house in Hammond. He recalls his inspiration received when working for Benjamin Mann Morrison. The Morrison store where he worked remains in its original place on the corner of East Thomas and Cypress, and incidentally, the blue lettered frontal mark may still be seen for the store begun in 1990.* The first store building of wooden construction burned down when the Morrisons were attending the St. Louis Exposition. The lower floor of the brick store housed a fancy grocery and feed store. The Morrison property, comprised an entire block bounded by West Church, Oak, Robert and Railroad Avenue, has remained intact through the years of Hammond. (From ECHOES FROM THE ATTIC, VI, 1971, by Edna Campbell) (*Perhaps this is meant to be 1909. The Central Drugstore, which occupies 125 East Thomas on the northwest corner of East Thomas and North Cypress, has a blue 1904 on the building. The buildings on the other corners do not have any year engraved on them. Hopscotch (children's clothier) occupies 201 East Thomas (with the vacant offices of the late Jimmy Morrison behind it), Hammond radio stations occupy 200 East Thomas, and The Red, White and Brew is located at 120 East Thomas. The block square mentioned above is now occupied by the following: 310 RR Ave: Attorneys: Travis Amar, William Bradley, Blair and Daniel Edwards. Recently, the old home has been completely renovated for these law offices. 305 RR Ave: Family Dentistry (Drs. Haight and Wood). 100 W. Robert: Gordon Matheny, Attorney. 110 W. Robert: Eye Clinic, Dr. Jerry Hollimon. These three are newer brick office buildings. An old residence at 310. 312 N. Oak: Our Kids, Inc. (child care center); See Part IV for more on this old home, "Dormer Windows and Bannisters". Two old freight depots remain in historic downtown Hammond. The one at 308-310 South Cate is a white cinder block building which has a large mural on the west side of it. The one next to it at the corner of Cate and Coleman is a red wooden building which now houses the Southeast Louisiana Flea Market. Paved parking lots extend for two blocks north and south of Thomas Street and on both sides of the Illinois Central-Gulf Railroad. BEC 2/6/01)