Bay Shore, New York facts for kids

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 community in the Town of Islip, New York, in the United States. It's located on the South Shore of Long Island, right next to the Great South Bay. In 2020, about 29,244 people lived there. Bay Shore is known as a "hamlet" and a "census-designated place" (CDP). A hamlet is a small community, and a CDP is an area that looks like a town but doesn't have its own local government.

Bay Shore's Early History

Bay Shore is one of the oldest communities on Long Island. A historic house called Sagtikos Manor was built around 1697. It was used by the British army during the American Revolutionary War. Later, President Washington even stayed there in 1790.

An old photo of the Bay Shore train station from 1879.

The land for Bay Shore was bought from the Secatogue Native Americans in 1708. The community's name has changed many times over the years. It was first called Penataquit, then Awixa. Later, it was briefly called Sodom, then Mechanicsville, and then Penataquit again. Finally, in 1868, the name was changed to Bay Shore, which was easier to spell and remember.

Bay Shore in the 1800s and Early 1900s

In the late 1800s, Bay Shore became famous for its shops and vacation spots. Wealthy New Yorkers came to escape the city. They enjoyed the white sand beaches of the Great South Bay and the fishing villages of Fire Island. It was a popular place for tourists, especially on weekends and in the summer. This was because the new Long Island Rail Road made it easy to travel from New York City. During World War I, Bay Shore was even home to a special United States Naval Air Reserve unit.

Growth After World War II

After World War II, Bay Shore's population grew a lot. From the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s, many new housing developments were built. These homes were for working and middle-class families moving from New York City. Even with this fast growth, the community stayed strong. Main Street remained a popular place for shopping.

Challenges and Changes in the 1970s and 1980s

Bay Shore faced some challenges starting in the late 1970s. Since it didn't have its own local government, big decisions were made by the Town of Islip and Suffolk County. Changes in rules allowed more businesses and multi-family homes, where only single-family houses had been before. Many shops on Main Street became empty or run down.

Also, a large shopping mall, the South Shore Mall, opened a few miles north of Main Street. This took business away from the smaller shops downtown. These changes made the community less lively for a while, and some residents moved away.

Bringing Bay Shore Back to Life

Since the 1980s, people have worked hard to improve Bay Shore. New, fancy townhouses and condos were built where old estates used to be. An old theater was turned into a YMCA, which is a community center. Main Street has been made much nicer with new sidewalks, old-style streetlights, and pretty plants.

Main Street is now popular again, with many new restaurants, clothing stores, and offices. A group called the Bay Shore Beautification Society turned an empty lot into a beautiful meditation garden. The marina, where boats are kept, was also rebuilt. In 2010, a new waterpark was added there.

The Bay Shore High School was also greatly improved and expanded from 2005 to 2008. Old department stores were torn down to make way for new shops. These include a Lowe's home improvement store, a Target, and a BMW car dealership. New condos were built near the train station, and a new pedestrian bridge was added over the train tracks. Bay Shore is known for having a mix of people from different backgrounds and cultures.

Historic Mansions and Estates

South of Main Street, also called Montauk Highway, you can find many large, old homes. These mansions were built between the 1880s and the 1920s. While some of these beautiful old homes still exist, others have been divided into smaller properties, torn down, or turned into businesses.

One well-known area with old mansions is west of downtown, extending into Brightwaters. This area is called O-Conee Estates. It has three streets with impressive homes that were once summer estates. The Vitagraph Studios, a big movie studio from the silent film era, even had a branch studio in Bay Shore in 1916.

On the east side of Bay Shore, you can find other historic homes like the W.H. Wray House and the Hulse House. There was also a very large mansion owned by the Johnson & Johnson family, but it has since been torn down.

Getting Around Bay Shore

Roads

Bay Shore is easy to reach by several major roads on Long Island:

• NY 27A, which is called Main Street in Bay Shore.
• CR-50, known as Union Boulevard.
• NY 27, also called Sunrise Highway.
• Southern State Parkway, with exits 41S, 42N, or 42S.
• CR-13, or Fifth Avenue.
• CR-57, known as Howell's Road or Bay Shore Road.

Buses

Many bus stops are available in Bay Shore. These buses are part of the Suffolk County Transit system.

Train

The Bay Shore station is a stop on the Montauk Branch of the Long Island Rail Road. Trains go west towards Babylon and New York City, and east towards Montauk. This train stop is very popular for people traveling to and from Fire Island.

Ferries

Bay Shore has ferry terminals that take people to Fire Island. These ferries serve many different communities on Fire Island, like Atlantique, Ocean Beach, and Saltaire. The ferry terminals are at the very end of Maple Avenue. Some ferries also stop at the Bay Shore Marina.

Bay Shore's Location

Bay Shore is located on the South Shore of central Long Island. It's about 42 miles from Manhattan and 79 miles from Montauk. The community covers about 14.3 square kilometers (about 5.5 square miles). Most of this area is land, with a small part being water.

The northern border of Bay Shore is the Southern State Parkway. The Village of Brightwaters is to the west of Bay Shore. The Great South Bay is to the south. Most people in nearby communities like North Bay Shore and West Bay Shore also use Bay Shore as their postal address and attend the Bay Shore schools.

Who Lives in Bay Shore?

In 2010, there were about 26,337 people living in Bay Shore. The community is very diverse, with people from many different backgrounds. About 30.8% of the population identified as Hispanic. The average age of people living in Bay Shore was about 37.4 years old.

Bay Shore Union Free School District

The Bay Shore Union Free School District serves most of Bay Shore, West Bay Shore, and North Bay Shore. The school district's colors are Maroon and White, and their mascot is the Marauder.

The district has:

• Five elementary schools for grades Pre-K to 5:
  • Mary G. Clarkson (Pre-K–2)
  • Brook Avenue School (Pre-K–2)
  • Fifth Avenue School (Pre-K–2)
  • Gardiner Manor School (3–5)
  • South Country School (3–5)
• 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 many advanced courses, including the International Baccalaureate (IB) program.

In addition, St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church has a parochial school that offers elementary education for grades K-8. It opened in 1921.

Places to Worship

Bay Shore has many different places of worship for various faiths. These include several Christian churches, a Jewish center, and a mosque.

Famous People from Bay Shore

Many interesting people have connections to Bay Shore:

• Thomas Adams – He founded the Adams Chewing Gum Company in the 1800s.
• Lisa Aukland – A professional bodybuilder and powerlifter.
• Patti Austin – A Grammy Award-winning singer.
• Frank Boulton – A Bay Shore High School graduate who is now the president of the Long Island Ducks baseball team.
• Aristotle Dreher – A musician who graduated from Bay Shore High School.
• The Entenmann family – They founded the famous Entenmann's baked goods company.
• Amy Goodman – A well-known journalist who grew up in Bay Shore.
• Juanita Hall – An actress famous for her role as Bloody Mary in "South Pacific."
• Henry Osborne Havemeyer – A wealthy sugar businessman and art collector who spent summers in Bay Shore.
• Edward Francis Hutton – He founded the EF Hutton brokerage company.
• Saul Kripke – A famous philosopher.
• LL Cool J – A well-known recording artist and actor who attended Bay Shore High School.
• Richard Migliore – A retired award-winning horse jockey.
• Harvey Milk – A pioneer for gay rights who graduated from Bay Shore High School in 1947.
• Joe Namath – A famous NFL quarterback who had a summer home in Bay Shore.
• Mario Puzo – The author of the famous book "The Godfather" lived and died in Bay Shore.
• Judith Regan – A publisher who graduated from Bay Shore High School.
• Jeff Ruland – A professional basketball player and coach.
• Lilia Skala – An actress who lived in Bay Shore later in her life.
• Julia Gardiner Tyler – A First Lady of the United States.

Images for kids

• 

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

See also

In Spanish: Bay Shore para niños