The Pell City Public Library received a generous donation of books from the Alabama State Poetry Society, who was the recipient of a vast collection bequeathed by Ralph Hammond, a profound poet, politician, and author of 37 books. 

It isn’t easy to find a starting place to write about Ralph Hammond. His accomplishments were so many and so varied, they might have covered two or three lifetimes. He was born in Valley Head, Alabama, in 1916, and, according to Joe Whitten, both he and Ralph cherished their shared north Alabama heritage. 

During WWII, Hammond was assigned to be a Military War Correspondent in the European Theatre. He was there for both the Battle of the Bulge and the Normandy Invasion, and he was awarded Five Battle Stars for his work. He wrote about those experiences in the first of his 37 books, “My GI Aching Back.” 

Hammond was also involved in Alabama’s politics. He served two terms as mayor of Arab, Alabama. He also served as Chief of Staff, Press Secretary and speech writer for former Gov. “Big Jim” Folsom from 1947-1950 

Whatever else Hammond wrote, his greatest love was poetry. He served as president of the Alabama State Poetry Society (ASPS) in the 1980s and as Alabama’s eighth Poet Laureate from 1992-1995. He was a devout Methodist and authored 50 or more hymns. 

It was in 1995 that he first met Joe Whitten, and they became close friends. Hammond encouraged Joe in his poetry writing. According to Whitten, that wasn’t anything unusual. Ralph Hammond encouraged every poet he met. 

When Hammond passed away in 2010, his son donated his father’s vast collection of poetry books to the Alabama State Poetry Society, asking that they be housed in a library. Hammond was friends with many of the greatest poets in the world. Many of these books are by renowned poets and some are irreplaceable classics. 

That collection has found its new home in our Pell City Library. Joe Whitten, representing ASPS, officially presented them to Danny Stewart, Director of the Pell City Library on Saturday during the ASPS Fall Meeting. The collection will be a part of what will eventually be “The Poet’s Corner” at the library. 

Ralph Hammond…author, poet, encourager, mentor, politician and Christian…still giving by passing his collection on for all of us to enjoy.