The Town of East Hampton is a town in southeastern Suffolk County, New York United States. It is located at the eastern end of the South Shore of Long Island. It is the easternmost town in the state of New York. At the time of the 2020 United States census, it had a total population of 28,385.

The town includes the village of East Hampton, as well as the hamlets of Montauk, Amagansett, Wainscott, and Springs. It also includes part of the incorporated village of Sag Harbor.

East Hampton is located on a peninsula, bordered on the south by the Atlantic Ocean, to the east by Block Island Sound and to the north by Gardiners Bay, Napeague Bay and Fort Pond Bay. To the west is western Long Island, reaching to the East River and New York City. The Town has eight state parks, most located at the water's edge.

The town consists of 70 square miles (180 km²) and stretches nearly 25 miles (40 km), from Wainscott in the west to Montauk Point in the east. It is approximately six miles (10 km) wide at its widest point and less than one mile at its narrowest. The town has jurisdiction over Gardiners Island, which is one of the largest privately owned islands in the United States. The town has 70 miles (110 km) of shoreline.

History

Native-American history

Long Island Native American settlements, and their neighbors

This area had been inhabited for thousands of years by wandering tribes of indigenous peoples. At the time of European contact, East Hampton was home to the Pequot people, part of the culture that also occupied territory on the northern side of Long Island Sound, in what is now Connecticut of southern New England. They belong to the large Algonquian-speaking language family. Bands on Long Island were identified by their geographic locations. The historical people known to the colonists as the Montaukett, who were Pequot, controlled most of the territory at the east end of Long Island.

Indians inhabiting the western part of Long Island were part of the Lenape nation, whose language is also in the Algonquian family. Their territory extended to lower New York, western Connecticut and the mid-Atlantic coastal areas into New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Their bands were also known by the names of their geographic locations but did not constitute distinct peoples.

In the late-17th century Chief Wyandanch of the Montaukett negotiated with English colonists for the land in the East Hampton area. The differing concepts held by the Montaukett and English about land and its use contributed to the Montaukett losing most of their lands over the ensuing centuries. Wyandanch's elder brother, the grand sachem Poggaticut, sold an island to English colonist Lion Gardiner for "a large black dog, some powder and shot, and a few Dutch blankets." The next trade involved the land extending from present-day Southampton to the foot of the bluffs, at what is now Hither Hills State Park, for 24 hatchets, 24 coats, 20 looking glasses and 100 muxes.

In 1660, Chief Wyandanch's widow signed away the rest of the land from present-day Hither Hills to the tip of Montauk Point for 100 pounds, to be paid in 10 equal installments of "Indian corn or good wampum at six to a penny". The sales provided that the Montaukett were permitted to stay on the land, to hunt and fish at will, and to harvest the tails and fins of whales that beached on the East Hampton shores. Town officials who bought the land filed for reimbursement from the colony for the rum with which they had plied the tribe during negotiations. Gradually, however, colonists stopped the Montaukett using the land by preventing them from hunting and fishing. They were said to interfere with the crops on their farms, in a conflict similar to the later farmer-rancher arguments of the Old West.

Many of the Montaukett died during the 17th and 18th centuries from epidemics of smallpox, a Eurasian disease carried by some English and Dutch colonists and endemic in their communities, to which the Indians had no immunity. After the American Revolution, some Montaukett relocated with Shinnecock to Oneida County in western upstate New York, led by the Mohegan missionary Samson Occom, to try to escape the settlers' civilization. They formed the Brothertown Indians with other Indians from New England, and gave up some of their traditions. In 1831-1836, the Brothertown Indians migrated to Wisconsin, where they founded the settlement of Brothertown.

Stephen Talkhouse, Montaukett, c. 1860s

Some Montaukett continued to live on Long Island. In the mid to late nineteenth century, their most well-known member was Stephen Talkhouse. Their area on Lake Montauk was called Indian Fields until 1879. With their population reduced, over the years the Montaukett intermarried with other peoples of the area, but brought up many of their descendants as Montaukett in their culture. When Arthur W. Benson brought a government auction of Montauk, New York, in which he bought nearly the entire east end of the town, he evicted the Montaukett. They relocated to Freetown, a community established by free people of color on the northern edge of East Hampton Village. The tribe made several attempts to get the courts to declare the evictions illegal, but the court ruled in favor of the evictions. Since the 1990s, the Montaukett have pressed for formal recognition as a tribe. The Shinnecock Indian Nation, many of whom had continued to occupy a portion of land on the South Shore and claimed it as their reservation, received federal recognition in 2010 as a tribe and also have state recognition. Historically both groups were part of the larger Pequot people.

Montaukett artifacts and sweat lodges are visible from trails at Theodore Roosevelt County Park. The park was formerly called Montauk County Park.

Anglo-European settlement

Lion Gardiner tomb at the South End Cemetery

East Hampton was the first English settlement in the state of New York. In 1639 Lion Gardiner purchased land, what became known as Gardiner's Island, from the Montaukett people. In 1648 a royal British charter recognized the island as a wholly contained colony, independent of both New York and Connecticut. It kept that status until after the American Revolution, when it came under New York State and the Town of East Hampton authority.

On June 12, 1640, nine Puritan families from Lynn, Massachusetts landed at what is now known as Conscience Point, in Southampton; some later migrated to present-day East Hampton. Among the first English settlers in East Hampton were John Hand, Thomas Talmage, Daniel Howe, Thomas Thomson, John Mulford, William Hedges, Ralph Dayton, Thomas Chatfield and Thomas Osborn.

The Mulford Farmhouse, on James Lane, is the best-preserved 17th-century English colonial house in East Hampton. The barn dates to 1721, and the complex is operated as a living museum. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The house was built in 1680 for Josiah Hobart, a prominent early settler, named in the first formal deed of conveyance of East Hampton. This was known as the East-Hampton Pattent or Dongan Patent. The 1686 instrument granting the Town of East Hampton to its new proprietors was signed by Thomas Dongan, then Governor of New York. The patent named Capt. Hobart one of "Trustees of the freeholders and commonalty of the town of East-Hampton". Sons of Rev. Peter Hobart, founding minister of Old Ship Church in Hingham, Massachusetts, Josiah Hobart and his brother Joshua both migrated to Long Island with their families. Josiah Hobart settled in East Hampton, where he served as High Sheriff of Suffolk County. His brother Joshua, a minister, went to Southold, where he served the town for 45 years.

Isaac Van Scoy from Amagansett wed Mercy Edwards in February 1757, and during the spring of that year, the couple relocated to the region referred to as Northwest or Alewife Brook Neck, located approximately six miles north of East Hampton Village. This Northwest "Ghost town" settlement during the mid 1800s saw development due to Northwest Harbor, later it was deemed too shallow for deep draft ships and the harbor moved to Sag Harbor, leading to the settlements demise.

Mulford House, East Hampton

East Hampton was the third Connecticut settlement on the East end of Long Island. East Hampton formally united with Connecticut in 1657. Long Island was formally declared to be part of New York (and also subject to English law) by Charles II of England after four British frigates captured what is today New York City, releasing East Hampton from its Connecticut governance.

East Hampton was first called Maidstone, after Maidstone, Kent, England. The name was later changed to "Easthampton", reflecting the geographic names of its neighbors, Southampton and Westhampton. In 1885 the name was split into two words, after the local newspaper the East Hampton Star began using the two-word name. "Maidstone" is frequently used in place names throughout the town, including the Maidstone Golf Club.

Deep Hollow Ranch, established in 1658 in Montauk, is the oldest continuously operating cattle ranch in the United States.

Geography

East Hampton is bounded by Southampton to the west, the Atlantic Ocean to the south, Block Island Sound to the east, and Napeague Bay to the north.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 386.6 square miles (1,001 km²), of which 74.4 square miles (193 km²) is land and 312.2 square miles (809 km²) (80.76%) is water.

Climate

East Hampton has an Oceanic climate climate (Köppen Cfb). East Hampton has chilly, wet winters and very warm, dry summers due to the moderating influence of the ocean, which suppresses thunderstorm development and moderates summer temperatures. Summers have very warm, sunny, and stable weather, whereas the winters are often stormy due to coastal storms which bring rain but little snow. The region averages only about 10 inches or 0.25 metres of snow annually.

Climate data for East Hampton
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °F (°C)	57 (14)	59 (15)	70 (21)	84 (29)	86 (30)	97 (36)	95 (35)	97 (36)	91 (33)	81 (27)	72 (22)	63 (17)	97 (36)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C)	37 (3)	41 (5)	45 (7)	55 (13)	64 (18)	73 (23)	79 (26)	77 (25)	72 (22)	63 (17)	52 (11)	41 (5)	59 (15)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C)	23 (−5)	25 (−4)	30 (−1)	41 (5)	48 (9)	57 (14)	64 (18)	63 (17)	57 (14)	46 (8)	37 (3)	27 (−3)	43 (6)
Record low °F (°C)	0 (−18)	−2 (−19)	10 (−12)	16 (−9)	34 (1)	36 (2)	46 (8)	50 (10)	39 (4)	19 (−7)	18 (−8)	1 (−17)	−2 (−19)
Average rainfall inches (mm)	2.8 (71)	3.1 (79)	3.5 (89)	4.0 (102)	3.1 (79)	2.1 (53)	1.3 (33)	1.2 (30)	2.1 (53)	2.9 (74)	5.4 (137)	2.6 (66)	34.1 (866)
Source: Weatherbase

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1790	1,497	—
1800	1,549	3.5%
1810	1,484	−4.2%
1820	1,646	10.9%
1830	1,668	1.3%
1840	2,076	24.5%
1850	2,122	2.2%
1860	2,267	6.8%
1870	2,372	4.6%
1880	2,515	6.0%
1890	2,431	−3.3%
1900	3,746	54.1%
1910	4,722	26.1%
1920	4,852	2.8%
1930	6,569	35.4%
1940	6,529	−0.6%
1950	6,325	−3.1%
1960	8,827	39.6%
1970	10,980	24.4%
1980	14,029	27.8%
1990	16,132	15.0%
2000	19,718	22.2%
2010	21,457	8.8%
2020	28,385	32.3%
U.S. Decennial Census

East Hampton town map from U.S. Census

Demographics in East Hampton were skewed by the fact that more than half the houses were owned as second homes (among the owners were some of the wealthiest people in the country). The East Hampton economy was based on retail and services to support the residential community.

As of the census of 2010, there were 21,457 people and 21,038 households residing in East Hampton. The population density was 290.0 inhabitants per square mile (112.0/km²). There were 2,251 housing units at an average density of 403.6 per square mile (155.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 84.81% White, 26.38% Hispanic or Latino of any race, 3.36% Black or African American, 0.60% Native American, 1.32% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 8.33% from other races, and 1.50% from two or more races.

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,445 households, out of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.2% were married couples living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.0% were non-families. 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.07.

As of the census of 2010, in the town the population was spread out, with 19.9% under the age of 18, 2.2% from 18 to 20, 5.1% from 20 to 24, 11.3% from 25 to 34, 21.5% from 35 to 49, 22.5% from 50 to 64, and 17.6% who were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females, there were 101.5 males.

As of the census of 2000, the median income for a household in the town was $52,201, and the median income for a family was $55,357. Males had a median income of $38,566 versus $29,750 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $25,725. 12.2% of the population and 10.3% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 20.5% of those under the age of 18 and 4.2% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Special events

One of the highlights of the summer is East Hampton Fire Department fireworks display at Main Beach, usually held the Saturday night closest to July 4. The fireworks displays have generated controversy since 2005, when they were postponed because they were considered disruptive to the nearby nesting of the endangered piping plover. In 2005, 2007, and 2008 the fireworks were postponed until Labor Day weekend to protect the birds' nesting season. The village administration has since postponed the fireworks display to Labor Day weekend indefinitely.

A big draw in the summer had also been the shark fishing tournaments in Montauk. Since 2007, the Humane Society and other animal welfare groups have protested that the tournaments are cruel to the sharks, as they are not being caught for food.

Each summer, the Artists and Writers Softball Game, a charity benefit, is held. Past players have included John Irving, Norman Mailer, Kurt Vonnegut, Dustin Hoffman, President Bill Clinton, and singer Paul Simon.

Every October the town hosts the Hamptons International Film Festival, an event screening independent films in several local theaters. It has a fairly large draw from the New York City crowd.

Barefoot Contessa, a Food Network original show, is shot in East Hampton.

Communities and locations

Villages (incorporated)

East Hampton
Sag Harbor, (west of Division Street is in the Town of Southampton)

Hamlets (unincorporated)

Census-designated places

In addition to the above, the United States Census has two locations using terms that are usually used by residents of the town:

East Hampton North – the area just north of the village, known locally as Freetown, as it was founded in the 19th century by free people of color, including some of Montaukett descent.
Northwest Harbor – this area northwest of the village that is usually referred to locally as "Northwest" or "Northwest Woods." It has a harbor.

State parks

Suffolk County parks

Education

Clinton Academy

East Hampton does not have any colleges. The now disbanded Clinton Academy on Main Street was the first chartered Academy authorized by the New York State Board of Regents in 1784. Three high schools are in the Town:

East Hampton High School, part of the East Hampton Union Free School District, and the principal school for the entire town outside of Sag Harbor. There were 920 enrolled students in grades 9-12 for the 2019–2020 school year. Its mascot is the Bonackers, which derives its name from Accabonac Harbor in the nearby Springs.
Pierson Middle-High School, part of the Sag Harbor Union Free School District, is physically in East Hampton and serves Sag Harbor (which is partially within the town of Southampton). There were 535 enrolled students in grades 6-12 for the 2019–2020 school year. Its mascot is the Whalers.
Ross School – The largest private school on the East End, the Ross School educates students from pre-school through 12th grade.

American educator Catharine Beecher was born in East Hampton.

Television stations in East Hampton

WVVH-CD Hamptons TV, UHF Channel 50, the largest FCC licensed TV station in Suffolk County. It broadcasts from the East Hampton Airport industrial park in Wainscott.
Local-access television broadcasts the two public access channels in East Hampton town, Ch 20 public access, and Ch 22 government and education. They are located at the LTV Studios in Wainscott.

Radio stations in East Hampton

East Hampton

WEHM 96.9 FM

Montauk

WELJ 104.7 FM
WEER 88.7 FM
WEGB 90.7 FM
WJJF 94.9 FM
WBLQ 1230 AM

Transportation

East Hampton station on the Long Island Rail Road

Railroad lines

The Long Island Rail Road's sole line in the Town of East Hampton is the Montauk Branch, which includes stations in East Hampton, Amagansett, and Montauk.

Bus service

The Town of East Hampton is served primarily by Suffolk County Transit bus routes, although Hampton Jitney buses are available for trips to New York City.

Major roads

New York State Route 27
New York State Route 114
County Route 38
County Route 79
County Route 113

Airports

The town of East Hampton contains the East Hampton Airport along the Southampton-East Hampton town line, and Montauk Airport on the northeastern corner of Lake Montauk.

Ferries

The sole ferry in the Town of East Hampton is a passenger ferry taking people across the Block Island Sound between Montauk Harbor and either Block Island, New London, or Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard.

East Hampton, New York facts for kids

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