THE HISTORY OF HAMMOND LAKE

 The area of homes we call Hammond Lake is actually made up of nine subdivisions in two Oakland County townships, Bloomfield and West Bloomfield. Like many lakes in Oakland County, the origins of Hammond Lake and the Hammond Lake Estates can be traced back to the end of the last great ice age. Geologist believe that about 10,000 years ago a depression was formed by the isolation of a large block of ice as the ice sheets retreated. This ice block melted and Hammond Lake was born. Ice-block lakes, like Hammond Lake, are characterized by basins with a small area of shallow water along the shore and a steep drop off to a larger area of deep water.

Early American Days

It wasn’t until centuries later that we had any written accounts of the area. The first official team of surveyors came into the area in 1794. They characterized it as “one vast swamp”. Historians feel that these surveyors probably did not venture past the area now known as Ferndale (coming from Detroit). A later exploration, taken in 1817, by a man who became Michigan’s first governor, Lewis Cass, found Oakland County to be the most beautiful country imaginable.

This was something many early French explorers and trappers had known. They were impressed with our area’s many clear lakes and dense forests. The search for fur bearing animals undoubtedly led them across our neighborhood. While they collected pelts they traded with the many Native Americans who flourished here because of the abundant fish and game.

French, British, and Native Americans

Eventually the desires of the European settlers for land led to clashes with people who were already there. After the British gained the territory, as a result of France’s loss in the French and Indian War, the Indian nations formed a confederacy under the great Ottawa chief named Pontiac. In 1763, fueled by a prophet who preached rejection of all things European and return to the old traditions, Pontiac’s forces launched a series of attacks on the network of British trading posts in Western Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan. The ultimate goal was the destruction of the British garrison in Detroit. The British prevailed and within a year, Chief Pontiac was killed. Legend has it that Chief Pontiac is buried on Apple Island, Orchard Lake.

Not all of the native tribes opposed the British. Some had grown accustomed to the trading relationships and had become allies. These native allies helped the British hold on to this area even though their territories had been officially ceded to the United States after the American Revolution. Finally, in 1794, General Anthony “Mad” Wayne defeated the British native allies and Detroit was surrendered to the US. Fort Wayne, built in the 1840s and located at the foot of Livernois on the Detroit River, was named after him. 

The 1800s

It wasn’t until after the war of 1812, and the appointment of Lewis Cass as military commander and governor of Michigan, that the large scale white settlement really began. Cass’s policy had two objectives: remove the native populations and open up Michigan to European settlers. He sent out survey teams to determine the most suitable areas for settlement and to draw up maps to facilitate land sales.

By 1824 most of the area around Hammond Lake had been purchased by Rufus R. Robinson of Erie County, New York. He paid about $2.00 an acre for this and for his land around Orchard and Pine Lakes. The Talbots, Ingrams, and Hunters also bought small parcels. While our lake’s name wasn’t recorded then, others like Orchards and Pine carried their native names. Some, like Black Walnut, now Walnut Lake and Pickerel, now Sylvan Lake, have had name changes.

Other changes came rapidly. By 1831, when a French author, Alexis de Tocqueville (Democracy in America) and a friend passed by our neighborhood and stayed overnight in Pontiac, most native sites have vanished. Tocqueville wrote…

         “We passed through valleys celebrated in the history of Indians. We found valleys that they had named, we crossed rivers still bearing the names of their tribes, but everywhere the savage’s huts had given away to the civilized man’s house.”

Land Available at Bargain Prices

One thing that has certainly changed since his journey is the price of land. The bartender at the hotel in Pontiac told them that, “Unlike in France, land in Michigan is very cheap…a laborer can earn enough in one day to buy an acre.” The barkeeper was aghast when he was told the travelers were going to try and go buy Saginaw Bay -- “from here to Saginaw you find hardly anything but the wilds and untrodden solitudes.” Undeterred, de Tocqueville took off the next day. His accounts of pioneers who used bears for watch dogs and other oddities, encountered on his sojourn through the wild Michigan territories, sparked more interest in the area.

First Named “Lord’s Lake”

In 1885, Robinson’s heirs, his wife Mary Ann and his son Marshall, had sold his properties around Hammond Lake to George Hand. Four years later, the property came into the possession of the Rochester City Bank, a C. Drake, and Henry and Mary Lord. In 1879, Lord acquired more of the lake property from one of the original owners, Hunter. This made Lord the largest landowner of this area and Hammond Lake finally got its first official name… Lord’s Lake. Read about Henry Lord in the Spring and Summer2002 Newsletter issues of the Greater West Bloomfield Historical Society… compiled by Neil Hepburn, GWBHS board member and newsletter editor.

Fred Carlisle’s “West Wind Farm”

In the same year (1879), Frederick and Charlotte Carlisle bought most of the Lord property for $26,000 and built a magnificent farm house on the northern side of the lake (behind the Shell gas station and Mitchell Dry Cleaners). They called their estate “West Wind Farm.” A lithograph of it was included in the history of Oakland County. From the front porch of their farm they could look north to sheep and cow pastures (now a McDonald’s) and west to Farmington Road , now called Middlebelt Road. 

But not everything was bucolic. Two years later, the Bloomfield half of the Carlisle’s farm was seized and sold at an Oakland Country sheriff’s auction to Albert North for $133.49.

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Enter Hammond and Whitfield

By 1896, the Hammond family and Daniel Whitfield (who later lent his name to the elementary school on Orchard Lake Road at Ward Road) owned the area around Lord’s Lake. The school, which started in 1852, was closed in 1991. The school lay derelict till demolished in 2003 in anticipation of the passage of a highly controversial Pontiac School District bond issue. The ten acre property remains vacant as the $456 million dollar bond issue was soundly defeated by a record voter turnout. According to the deed, only another school may be built on the land. Within a short time, the Hammonds acquired West Winds Farms, all the property around the lake then named it after themselves. They were an interesting and prosperous family. George Hammond recognized the need to combine the Midwest’s ability to raise cattle with the East Coasts burgeoning immigrant population hunger. 

George Hammond Makes His Fortune

Next to Hammond’s Detroit butcher shop was a fish seller who invented an ice box on wheels that kept his product fresh during shipping. Hammond saw its potential, but on a much bigger scale, and had an experimental train car designed for transporting meat. After several successful shipments, Hammond set up operations near the Chicago stock yards -- in a little town with plenty of ice. The operation grew and grew. By 1879, his $6,000 initial investment was worth $3,000,000. Hammond, who kept his family and his roots in Michigan plowed much of his earnings into Michigan real estate even though his fortune was being made in Chicago and Indiana. The town where he got his ice had renamed itself Hammond, Indiana in tribute for making it prosperous. George Hammond died in 1883 at the age of 45, but his family continued to invest in Michigan real estate. At one time they were the largest landowners in Detroit.

The Hammond estate held on to most of their property until the 1930s but then began to sell small parcels. One parcel was bought by the Ward Sand and Gravel Company in 1931. They planned to turn the eastern half of the lake, up to the sand bar (which was still full of lush trees), into a gravel pit. Thankfully, this project was never implemented. 

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The Modern Era of Hammond Lake

After World War II, the Hammond Lake became part of the rush to the suburbs. The Skaes, Cosgains, Phelps and the Hammond Realty Company acquired the bulk of the property by 1954 and within a short time, the area was plotted and sprouting new houses.

While the Hammond Mansion (formally West Winds) was torn down (remnants of the stone stairs remained until removal in the late 1990s) the community began to grow and thrive. The deed restrictions of the new community made a provision for the establishment of a community association and early residents quickly organized the Hammond Lake Civic Association in 1954. One of the first acts of the Associations new board of directors was to hire a beach monitor. Not surprisingly, concern for the ongoing health and safety of the lake was the chief interest of the community. But there were many tasks for the members to tackle. The developers hadn’t blacktopped the roads and the community had to raise money themselves. They did.

The 1960s

By the early 1960s, word was out that Hammond Lake was a terrific place to live and the community was growing. But growth meant that there was a need to look out for traffic safety. The Association Board petitioned the townships and had stop signs and speed limits posted in the community. Unfortunately, in 1964 a traffic accident resulted in the death of a resident as she pulled out from North Hammond Lake Drive onto Middlebelt one night. But this tragedy galvanized the community and forced the West Bloomfield Township to install street lights at the intersections. Hammond Lake was truly moving away from its rural roots.

Several perennial topics were discussed in the ‘60s -- including entrance signs and play equipment at the beach. The signs/no signs debate went on and on till they were finally installed… in 2001! The beach monitor reported that he had to bring in six swimmers in the summer of 1964 and that teenagers had been a problem at times. He added “when aren’t they?”

The 1970s

In the late 1970s, the Civic Association negotiated with the Township Water Department and secured Detroit water for Hammond Lake residents. Residents on the north end of the lake had been experiencing low water pressure from their wells for years. But when municipal water finally was available they inherited a nice benefit. They could tie-in for about $100 since the old underground water lines of the Housman-Spitzley Realty Company would be used to bring in the water. Other lake residents had to spend more -- over $1,000 to tie-in. Most residents voted to hook up to the urban water system and abandon their wells. This tie in was also extended to the empty lots on Spinnaker Lane on the west side of the lake. This made the shallow lots build able.

The ‘70s also saw the lake clogged with weeds. After much discussion about whether to use a chemical retardant or harvest the weeds, the community association enlisted the financial support of 120 residents and hired a professional weed cutting firm. Over 50 tons of weeds were trimmed and removed from the lake and pond but many residents felt the whole effort didn’t go far enough. At least one resident was happy -- he had some of the weeds dumped in his yard and used them as mulch.

Controlling the Lake Level

Growth spawned other problems. When Square Lake Road was paved, the contractor inadvertently filled in the natural drainage that allowed Hammond Lake to flow into Upper Long Lake. A few years of dry weather masked the problem but after several years of heavy rainfall, the lake’s water level was rising dangerously. Lower level homes were threatened, tree roots were drowning and septic fields were in danger of being swamped. After much investigation, the Association Board discovered old US Geographic Survey maps that showed the blocked natural drainage. In 1970, a special assessment was voted by community and a drainage system was built under South Hammond Lake Road from Hammond Lake to the pond. The pond then drains (under Square Lake Rd.) into Upper Long Lake. The lake levels have remained relatively constant ever since. 

Stocking the Lake with Fish

Through the ‘60s and the ‘70s there was much discussion about whether or not there were enough fish, too many fish or weather they were the right type of fish. Several residents supported the idea of a chemical fish kill and a restocking of the lake. After studying various options, talking to the Department of Natural Resources and obtaining the help of an ichthyologist, it was decided to table the whole effort. The experts advised the best way to ensure the health of the fish population and the lake was not to use fertilizer near the lake’s edge, prevent weed and grass clippings from entering the lake, stop feeding the ducks and geese that foul the lake and ultimately eliminate the septic systems by installing a sanitary sewer system. This would prevent contaminants and nutrients from entering the lake.

Social Events

An annual dinner dance was held during this period at the Edgewood Country Club. The menu gave people a choice of prime rib, lobster or fried chicken with all the trimmings for under $4.00 -- oh, the good ole days. Later this social gathering was changed to a beach picnic, now known as our annual “Corn Roast”

Since 1985, Hammond Lake sponsored an annual Fourth of July fireworks party. Long time lake resident Frank Mc Laughlin on East Hammond Lake Drive started the tradition at his own expense. As the cost of larger fireworks, permits and insurance began to rise, the HL Association began to collect donations from resident members to fund the event. The spectacular display also has a music soundtrack played on large speakers and broadcast to the homes by an FM radio signal. Frank also does the lake water quality testing through his own company, Micro Biological Associates Inc., located in Farmington Hills.

When Frank Mc Laughlin died in 2009, so went the annual fireworks. Thank you Frank for the many years of Fourth of July celebrations.

The New Century Begins… 2000s

In 2001 special landscaping projects (including three signs at the subdivision entrances) lock and key access to the beach area, aeration of the pond, neighboring land development and continued work to keep our lake healthy head the list of neighborhood projects. Due to the diligence of our Association, Hammond Lake is the only lake free of Zebra Mussels (as of this writing on July 13, 2004). Today also marks the day of a repaving of the West Bloomfield part of South Hammond Lake Rd. along with Beachview Drive, which was never paved. Just the affected residents paid for the paving. Eventually, aging septic systems will have to be replaced with a sewer system.

Property values are also on the rise. In 2000, one house on North Hammond Lake Drive was purchased for around $350,000, then demolished. A beautiful modern home was built. In 2004, the asking price of one home for sale on South Hammond is at $879,000! Prices have certainly come a long way since my parents purchased their beautiful six bedroom brick home on South Hammond Lake Drive for a mere $78,000 in 1975. But it seemed a lot of money back then. 

In Conclusion

New families, new friends, new visions, and new concerns keep our community fresh and exciting. Our community is one that clearly has a long and proud history. It’s now up to the current Hammond Lake residents to carry on.

  • History taken from annual Hammond Lake Estates Community Directory.

  • Original composition in 1999 by Rob Leider, Hammond Lake resident.

  • Updated in 2004 by Paul Mellerowicz (Hammond Lake resident since 1975 and Board Member of the Greater West Bloomfield Historical Society)