Hood was built in the early 29th century on the remnants of Richland, a town that began in 1860 as a shipping site for grain and at its peak it boasted a warehouse, hotel, grocery store, church, school, and post office. Within 20 years, however, Delta crops shifted from grain to fruit, and Richland experienced a slow and steady decline. The post office closed in 1888.
Enter Edward Harriman, who owned the Southern Pacific and several other railroads. Harrison envisioned a picturesque “Netherlands Route” that would connect Sacramento to San Francisco by rail and steamboat. In 1909, Southern Pacific developed a new town at the site of the former Richland post office, naming it after William Hood, Southern Pacific’s Chief Construction Engineer.
Within a few years, Southern Pacific built a depot and spur down to a wharf along the railroad levee. Commercial buildings and businesses, including a large packing shed, seed farms, and two creameries, opened in or near Hood for easy access to the railroad.
The town had a grocery, hardware store, café, church, and post office. The crown jewel was the Hotel Netherlands, which was prt of the Southern Pacific’s effort to sell Hood as a vacation destination in Harrison’s vision of “Netherlands of America.” The “Netherlands Route” idea ended soon after Harriman died, and rail traffic through Hood eventually waned. Southern Pacific abandoned the rail line in 1978.
Today, Hood has nearly 300 residents, many of whose families have lived here for generations. The post office remains, and there is a grocery store and a community park. The Hood Station Firehouse 92 sells food and drink out of the old hardware store, and the River Road Exchange, originally home to a shipping and processing facility, is being renovated for retail use, including wineries, distilleries, and breweries, and wedding/banquet facilities.
- River Road Exchange
- Hood Supply Co. Bar and Grill (10761 Hood-Franklin Road)
- Old post office
- Hood Community Park
Hood Supply Co Bar and Grill (10761 Hood-Franklin Road, Hood 95639)
