William G. Hammond
Organist, Choirmaster, Composer
by Angelica Fraine
William Hammond was born on August 9, 1874, in Melville, NY, on Long Island, to George Hammond and Mary Shipman.
While a large portion of his life was spent in New York, due to his father’s deep familial roots in Rhode Island, Hammond spent significant amounts of time in the city of Newport. In 1890, at the age of just 16, Hammond was named organist of Trinity Church in the city.
Newport Directory, 1890
By 1892, he’d moved to St. John’s Church on Poplar Street. in 1894, Hammond accepted a position at St. Thomas Church in Brooklyn, New York where he would serve as both choirmaster and organist.
In making the move back to New York, Hammond began working on composing his own sacred music, which would be performed during church services and parish-hosted concerts, in high demand after building a large following for himself across both New York and Rhode Island.
In the spring of 1903, Hammond was named organist and director of music for Old First Reformed Church in Park Slope, Brooklyn, a position he would uphold until 1912. Here he would also organize the Hammond Choral Society, which regularly performed for the community.
Hammond would continue to play and compose for over another 30 years before a car accident in New York City would tragically end his life.
He died on December 23, 1945, at the age of 71.
New York Times, December 23, 1945