Bay Shore, New York facts for kids

"Bay Shore" redirects here. For other uses, see Bay Shore (disambiguation).

Quick facts for kids Bay Shore, New York
Hamlet and census-designated place
Bay Shore Marina
Motto(s): The Heart of the South Shore
U.S. Census map
Bay Shore, New York Location in New York
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Suffolk
Town	Islip
Area
• Total	14.3 km² (5.5 sq mi)
• Land	13.9 km² (5.4 sq mi)
• Water	0.4 km² (0.2 sq mi)
Elevation	5 m (16 ft)
Population (2020)
• Total	29,244
• Density	2,045/km² (5,297/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern Time Zone)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00
ZIP Code	11706
Area code(s)	631, 934
FIPS code	36-04935
GNIS feature ID	0943194

Bay Shore is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Islip, New York, United States. It is situated on the South Shore of Long Island, adjoining the Great South Bay. The population of the CDP was 29,244 at the time of the 2020 census.

Early history

Bay Shore is one of the older hamlets on Long Island. Sagtikos Manor, located in West Bay Shore, was built around 1697. It was used as a British armed forces headquarters, at the time of the Battle of Long Island during the Revolutionary War. President Washington stayed at the manor during his tour of Long Island in 1790.

George Bradford Brainerd (American, 1845-1887). Station, Bay Shore, Long Island, September 1879. Collodion silver glass wet plate negative. Brooklyn Museum

The land that would become Bay Shore proper was purchased from the Secatogue Native Americans in 1708 by local school teacher John Mowbray for "several eel spears".

The hamlet's name has changed over time: Early European settlers referred to the area first as Penataquit and later as Awixa; both were names used by the Native American Secatogue tribe. For reasons never documented, the name was changed in the early 19th century to Sodom. In 1842 there was a further name change to Mechanicsville, then a return in 1849 to Penataquit. The name Penataquit proved unpopular because it was difficult to spell. The name of the hamlet and post office was changed to Bay Shore in 1868.

19th and early 20th centuries

Bay Shore became renowned in the late 19th century for its shopping district and resorts. The rural hamlet became popular with affluent New Yorkers looking to escape the city to white sand beaches of the Great South Bay and the fishing villages of Fire Island. It was a tourist spot on weekends and during the summer, in large part because the newly built Long Island Rail Road enabled easy access from New York City. During World War I it became the headquarters of the First Yale Unit, a United States Naval Air Reserve unit.

Post-World War II development

The population of Bay Shore increased significantly after World War II: from the mid-1950s through mid-1960s, a variety of housing developments were constructed on farms and unused woodlands. Those developments were settled largely by working and middle class first-time home buyers from New York City.

Despite strains on the community brought on by sudden, substantial growth, the hamlet remained sound. Main Street continued to be one of the region's most popular shopping destinations.

1970s and 1980s

Bay Shore suffered a decline beginning in the late 1970s. Without a local government, residents were unable to make decisions that were instead left to the Town of Islip and Suffolk County. The population density and demographics shifted when rezoning permitted businesses, rental properties and multi-family dwellings where previously only single-family houses had been allowed. Many Main Street storefronts became dilapidated or vacant. The Cortland Hotel, along with other historic sites, was closed, the parks were unkempt, and many residents relocated. Construction of the South Shore Mall (currently Westfield South Shore) two miles north of Main Street took business away from the small businesses on Main Street. Deinstitutionalization caused psychiatric patients of the nearby Pilgrim State Hospital to be hastily relocated to rental housing downtown, often without sufficient professional support. With the opening of the county's social services "mini-center" on Union Boulevard, many residents witnessed an increase in crime, as indigents began wandering the streets and sleeping in public spaces and parks. Homes, businesses and restaurants on the waterfront fared better, partly because it's an embarkation point for ferries to beaches on Fire Island.

Restoration and the hamlet today

Work to restore Bay Shore has been ongoing since the 1980s. Upscale townhouses and condominiums were built in gated communities on the grounds of old estates. The former Bay Shore Theater and one-time opera house was renovated and expanded into a YMCA. The redevelopment of Main Street is ongoing; efforts include new sidewalks, antique-style streetlights, new landscaping and restored parks. Main Street has regained much of its popularity. There are many attractive new restaurants, clothing boutiques and other stores and offices. The Bay Shore Beautification Society transformed an empty lot on Main Street into a meditation garden that has since been recognized for its excellent design.

A US battleship was to have been placed at the Bay Shore Marina. However, the water was deemed too shallow, and instead a decommissioned WWII torpedo was converted into a monument. The aging bulkhead and other dock structures at the marina were rebuilt. Over the summer of 2010, a new waterpark was built at the marina with a renovated bath house and new landscaping.

The Bay Shore High School underwent an extensive renovation and an expansion from 2005 through 2008. The project has been noted for its close attention to architectural and historic detail.

Abandoned department stores at the Gardiner Manor Mall were razed to make new use of the property. Most of the old mall and adjacent buildings were replaced by new commercial and retail spaces, including a Lowe's home improvement center, a Target and a BMW dealership.

In 2008 and 2009 new condominiums replaced dilapidated housing next to the train station. Additionally, a pedestrian bridge was built over the tracks, and the old underground tunnel between platforms was closed.

Bay Shore continues to support greater socioeconomic, religious and ethnic diversity than many other Long Island communities.

Historic mansions and estates

South of Main Street, also known as Montauk Highway, is an area of mansions and other large homes, built from the 1880s through the 1920s.

Though many architecturally impressive homes from that period remain, others have been subdivided, demolished or converted to commercial properties.

West of downtown, extending into neighboring Brightwaters, is the best-known section of extant, older mansions and large houses. The private association, known as O-Conee Estates, also lies just west of downtown Bay Shore, and is considered the town's most prominent and impressive remaining estate section. The association encompasses three parallel lanes, Garner Lane, Lawrence Lane, and West Lane, all lying south of Montauk Highway. During the early to mid-nineteenth century, the site of the association was occupied by the summer estates of Francis C. Lawrance and Thomas Garner, whose son, William Garner, would later become the vice commodore of the New York Yacht Club. The Vitagraph Studios, one of the largest studios of the silent era, had a branch studio located at 94 Fourth Avenue in Bay Shore and operated in 1916.

At the east end of the hamlet (mainly on Awixa, Penataquit and Montgomery avenues) are the W.H. Wray House , the Hulse House and the Gustavino Tile House, among others. There was the now-razed J.P. Morgan Estate, a large white mansion owned by the Johnson & Johnson family. This peninsula was originally named Thurber's Neck and subsequently renamed Penataquit Point.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Roads

Bay Shore is accessible by major roads on Long Island such as:

NY 27A, known by several names within the Bay Shore limits, including Main Street (Bay Shore), South Country Road (Brightwaters) and Montauk Highway (West Bay Shore)
CR-50, Union Boulevard
NY 27, known as Sunrise Highway. An alternate name is POW/MIA Memorial Highway, but this name is rarely used.
Southern State Parkway, exits 41S, 42N or exit 42S
CR-13, Fifth Avenue, runs from CR-4 (Commack Road) in Commack to Main Street in Bay Shore.
CR-57, Howell's Road/Bay Shore Road, runs from NY 231 in Deer Park to Third Avenue in Bay Shore.

Buses

There are many bus stops in Bay Shore on different lines, provided by Suffolk County Transit.

Train

Bay Shore station is a stop on the Montauk Branch of the Long Island Rail Road. LIRR trains travel westward toward Babylon and New York City, and eastward toward Montauk. The Bay Shore stop is a popular stop for visitors traveling to and from Fire Island.

Ferries

Bay Shore has terminals for the Ferries to Fire Island, serving Atlantique, Dunewood, Fair Harbor, Kismet, Ocean Bay Park, Ocean Beach, Point-O-Woods, Saltaire, and Seaview, and smaller hamlets. They are located at the southernmost end of Maple Avenue. Some daily ferries to Atlantique also make a stop at the Bay Shore Marina, which is across the canal from the Maple Avenue ferries.

Geography

The Bay Shore CDP is located at 40°43′47″N 73°15′13″W / 40.72972°N 73.25361°W / 40.72972; -73.25361 (40.729857, −73.253722), on the South Shore of central Long Island, approximately 42 miles (68 km) from Manhattan and 79 miles (127 km) from Montauk. According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 5.5 square miles (14.3 km²). 5.4 square miles (13.9 km²) of it is land and 0.15 square miles (0.4 km²) of it (2.88%) is water.

The northern boundary of the Bay Shore CDP is the Southern State Parkway. The northern part of the CDP (just south of the parkway) includes the hamlet of North Bay Shore. North of the parkway is the CDP of North Bay Shore, which contains the hamlet of Pine Aire and part of the hamlet of Brentwood.

The Village of Brightwaters is west of Bay Shore, and east of West Bay Shore and south of a portion of the Bay Shore CDP; The Great South Bay is to the south. The hamlet separates Bay Shore proper from West Bay Shore.

Almost all of the North Bay Shore CDP and the West Bay Shore CDP have the same postal ZIP code as Bay Shore, and nearly all residents of those communities are also served by the Bay Shore Union Free School District, as are residents of the Village of Brightwaters. The US Postal Service does not officially recognize North Bay Shore nor West Bay Shore as correct postal addresses, causing residents of those communities to use Bay Shore as their postal address. Portions of Fire Island are also served by the Bay Shore Post Office and Bay Shore Union Free School District.

Demographics of the CDP

As of the census of 2010, there were 26,337, 9,064 households, and 6,079 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 4,877.2 per square mile (1,894.7/km²). There were 9,663 housing units at an average density of 1,789.4/sq mi (695.2/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 61.0% White, 19.6% African American, 0.7% Native American, 3.2% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 11.3% from some other race, and 4.2% from two or more races. Hispanics of any race constituted 30.8%.

There were 9,064 households, out of which 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.7% were headed by married couples living together, 17.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.9% were non-families. 27.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% were individuals 65 years of age or older living alone. The average household size was 2.88 and the average family size was 3.45.

The population was spread out, with 24.6% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.4 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.5 males.

For the period 2009–2011, the estimated median income for a household in the CDP was $64,681, and the median income for a family was $74,223. Males had a median income of $44,816 versus $38,744 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $26,847. About 2.8% of families and 5.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.1% of those under age 18 and 9.5% of those age 65 or over.

Bay Shore Union Free School District

The Bay Shore UFSD serves most of Bay Shore, West Bay Shore, and North Bay Shore, with some portions served by neighboring school districts. Bay Shore School District colors are Maroon and White and the mascot is the Marauder.

Five elementary schools

Mary G. Clarkson, grades Pre-K–2

Brook Avenue School, grades Pre-K–2

Fifth Avenue School, grades Pre-K–2

Gardiner Manor School, grades 3–5 (located in West Bay Shore)

South Country School, grades 3–5 (located in West Bay Shore)
One middle school

Bay Shore Middle School, grades 6–8
One high school

Bay Shore High School, grades 9–12. Bay Shore High School offers extensive AP courses, and became an official International Baccalaureate (IB) school in December 2008.

In addition, Bay Shore Parochial School of St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church offers elementary education covering grades K–8 courses and curriculum.

Places of worship

Among Bay Shore's places of worship are: the Christian Science Society of Bay Shore, the First Baptist Church, First Congregational Church, St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church, Sinai Reform Temple, Unitarian Universalist Society of South Suffolk, Bay Shore Jewish Center, the United Methodist Church, Bethel A.M.E Church, St. Peter's by-the-Sea Episcopal Church, Saint Luke's Lutheran Church, Calvary Baptist Church and Masjid Darul-Quran.

Education

The Bay Shore Union Free School District serves the area with Bay Shore High School as the local high school.

In addition, Bay Shore Parochial School of St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church (of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre) offers elementary education covering grades K–8 courses and curriculum. It opened in 1921.

Notable people

Thomas Adams, 19th century founder of the Adams Chewing Gum Company (now part of Cadbury)
Lisa Aukland, professional bodybuilder, powerlifter, and born in Bay Shore
Patti Austin, Grammy Award-winning American R&B, pop and jazz singer.
Frank Boulton, Bay Shore High School alumnus, president of Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, owner and president of the Long Island Ducks
Aristotle Dreher, musician, co-founder of band Vaeda, born in Bay Shore and graduated from Bay Shore High School 1996
The Entenmann family, founders of Entenmann's baked goods
Amy Goodman, journalist, raised in Bay Shore and graduated from Bay Shore High School.
Juanita Hall (née Long), was an American musical theatre and film actress, best known as Bloody Mary in the stage and screen versions of South Pacific, lived and died in Bay Shore
Nancy Harrington, Florida state representative
Henry Osborne Havemeyer, 19th century sugar baron and art collector, summered in Bay Shore through the 1900s and was an active member of the Bay Shore Yacht Club
Edward Francis Hutton, founder of the EF Hutton brokerage company, summered in Bay Shore in the early 20th century
Bradish Johnson, distillery, plantation, and sugar refinery owner
Saul Kripke, philosopher and logician born in Bay Shore
Zed Key, NBA player for Ohio State Buckeyes
LL Cool J, recording artist and actor, born in Bay Shore & attended Bay Shore High School
Richard Migliore (born 1964), retired award-winning thoroughbred jockey and current TV analyst
Harvey Milk, former San Francisco Supervisor, gay rights pioneer, recipient of Presidential Medal of Freedom, graduated from Bay Shore High School in 1947
Joe Namath, 1970s NFL quarterback, had a summer home in Bay Shore during the early 1970s
Mario Puzo, author of "The Godfather" lived in Bay Shore where he penned his best sellers. He would die in Bay Shore.
Judith Regan, publisher, graduated from Bay Shore High School in 1971
Buzz Ritchie, co-founder of Gulf Coast Community Bank, born in Bay Shore, NY
Jeff Ruland, professional basketball player and coach
Lilia Skala, actress, lived in Bay Shore during her later years
Spurgeon Tucker, 20th century painter
Julia Gardiner Tyler, first lady of the United States during the last nine months of the Tyler administration.

Images for kids

George Bradford Brainerd (American, 1845–1887). Station, Bay Shore, Long Island, September 1879. Collodion silver glass wet plate negative. Brooklyn Museum