Hamtramck was originally settled by German farmers, but Polish immigrants moved into the area when the Dodge Brothers plant opened in 1914.

It is sometimes confused with Poletown, a traditional Polish neighborhood, which used to lie mostly in the city of Detroit and includes a small part of Hamtramck.

[16] Over the past thirty years, a large number of Muslim immigrants from the Middle East (especially Yemen), South Asia, and the Balkans have moved to the city.

[20] In 1910, the newly founded Dodge Main assembly plant created jobs for thousands of workers and led to additional millions of dollars in the city.

The establishment of the Dodge Main assembly plant led to a large influx of Polish immigrants who pushed out the incumbent German politicians.

According to Keith Matheny of the Detroit Free Press, the urban layout assists recent immigrants who do not yet have the credentials to drive an automobile, as Hamtramck is "uniquely walkable" and a "tight size".

[28][29] Neal Rubin of The Detroit News wrote in 2010 that despite the demographic changes, "In a lot of ways, Hamtramck still feels like a Polish enclave.

This request set off a contentious debate in the city, about the noise that would be caused by the call to prayer, eventually garnering national attention.

The festival includes live music on two stages, a carnival area, beer, and food tents extending the half-mile (1 km) stretch of Joseph Campau Street, from Caniff to Carpenter.

[43] Held at the Planet Ant Theater, the festival celebrates independent movies and the people who make them, featuring comedies, dramas, documentaries, animation and music videos.

In April 2009, American Axle announced that it planned to close its plant at the Hamtramck/Detroit border, thus eliminating several hundred jobs in the area.

The center promotes the preservation of Polish heritage through its display of cultural artifacts, often exhibited at festivals, schools and libraries.

The Museum's purpose is "to educate and inform the general public about the culture, art, and history of Ukrainians, their immigration to the United States and the contributions of Americans of Ukrainian descent to America; to engage in research in these areas; to maintain archives for the deposit of documents and other records relating to these topics; to acquire, preserve, exhibit artifacts of artistic, historical, and scientific value relating to these subjects; to sponsor public programs in order to study and preserve the heritage of Ukrainian Americans.

"[50] For more than 85 years, Kowalski Sausage Co. has manufactured meat products at 2270 Holbrook Street, which are distributed in the metropolitan Detroit area.

[64] From 1990 to 2000, of all of the municipalities in Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties, Hamtramck had the highest percentage growth in the Asian population.

[66] George Tysh of the Metro Times stated that "In the early days of the auto industry, Hamtramck's population swelled with Poles, so much so that you were more likely to hear Polish spoken on Joseph Campau than any other tongue.

[69] In June 2013, the city's Human Relations Commission facilitated the raising of flags of 18 countries from which Hamtramck residents emigrated.

Many moved because of lower costs of living, larger amounts of space, work available in small factories, and the large Muslim community in Metro Detroit.

[66] In 2002, over 80% of the Bangladeshi population within Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties lived in Hamtramck and some surrounding neighborhoods in Detroit.

[67] The district, along Caniff and Conant streets, included markets, stores, mosques, and bakeries owned by Bangladeshis, Indians, and Pakistanis.

[71] By 2008 the Bengali business district, between Davison and Harold Street, and partially within the city limits of Detroit, received the honorary title "Bangladesh Avenue" and was to be dedicated as such on November 8, 2008.

Akikul H. Shamin, the president of the Bangladesh Association of Michigan, estimated that Bangladeshi people operate 80% of the buildings and businesses in the portion of Conant Avenue.

[67] Most Bangladeshis in Hamtramck originate from the north-eastern region of Sylhet in Bangladesh;[75][76] therefore, most speak Sylheti, an Indic language that is often considered as a dialect of Bengali as well.

Sally Howell, author of "Competing for Muslims: New Strategies for Urban Renewal in Detroit", wrote that the mosque "has been credited" by public officials and area Muslims "with having turned around one of Detroit's roughest neighborhoods at the height of the crack cocaine epidemic of the 1980s, making its streets safe, revitalizing a dormant housing market, attracting new business to the area, and laying the foundation for an ethnically mixed, highly visible Muslim population in Detroit and Hamtramck.

The mural depicts a girl in a veil decorated with the blue sky, a farmer wearing a turban, and a woman in a hijab.

Sally Howell, author of "Competing for Muslims: New Strategies for Urban Renewal in Detroit", wrote that the request "brought to a head simmering Islamophobic sentiments" in Hamtramck.

[92][93][94] The move was criticized by senator Stephanie Chang, U.S. representatives Shri Thanedar and Rashida Tlaib, and Detroit mayor Mike Duggan.

[95][96] In response to a decision by the city council, multiple activist groups organized into a coalition opposing the flag restrictions.

The founding group consisted of individual activists, AntiTransphobe Detroit, Michigan General Defense Committee, and the Hamtramck Queer Alliance.

The growth of Hamtramck and neighboring Highland Park broke records for increases of population; both municipalities withstood annexation efforts from Detroit.