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Orient is a
hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...
and
census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...
(CDP) in Suffolk County,
Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...
,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
, United States. The CDP's population was 743 at the 2010 census. ''Orient'' and ''Orient Point'' are used almost interchangeably. However, Orient Point refers specifically to the physical point at the end of the North Fork of Long Island, while Orient is the hamlet in which the point is located.


History and tourism

Orient is the easternmost town on Long Island's North Fork. It was originally named Poquatuck, after the name of the local Native American tribe that resided along the inland waterways, then named Oyster Ponds because of the nearby
oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but no ...
beds. Orient and East Marion were originally called Oysterponds because of the abundance of shellfish in the area. What is now Orient was known as Lower Neck, while East Marion was called Upper Neck. The communities separated in 1836 and East Marion was named for Revolutionary War Gen.
Francis Marion Brigadier general (United States), Brigadier General Francis Marion ( 1732 – February 27, 1795), also known as the "Swamp Fox", was an American military officer, planter, and politician who served during the French and Indian War and t ...
, known as the Swamp Fox. "East" was tacked onto Marion because of an existing Marion upstate. The name Orient was chosen to reflect that area's easternmost position on the North Fork. A later legend has it that when
Oyster Bay, New York The Town of Oyster Bay is the easternmost of the three Administrative divisions of New York#Town, towns that make up Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, New York (state), New York, United States. Part of the New York metropolitan area, it is ...
became famous during the presidency of
Teddy Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York politics, including serving as ...
, the name was changed to ''Orient'' to match the name of its most prominent land feature, Orient Point. Orient's winter population swells to well over 1000 in the summer months. Other than a post office, a gas station, a country store, and a few seasonal tourist stands, there is no center of commerce, hence its residents depend on nearby Greenport for everyday necessities. Many make a living at the
United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...
lab on nearby Plum Island, a 5-minute boat ride from Orient Point across Plum Gut, or at businesses further west. Truck farming and
commercial fishing Commercial fishing is the activity of catching fish and other seafood for Commerce, commercial Profit (economics), profit, mostly from wild fisheries. It provides a large quantity of food to many countries around the world, but those who practice ...
industries remain as well. Definitely New England in style and flavor, the hamlet of Orient has homes built over the last three centuries. Locals joke that a "new house" is anything built since
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. The hamlet was originally settled by five families given a land grant by the King of England in the 17th century, and their surnames, King, Terry, Glover, Latham, Tuthill and Vail, still exist in local families. Later, Orient was used as a base of operations by British commanders such as
Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold (#Brandt, Brandt (1994), p. 4June 14, 1801) was an American-born British military officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. He fought with distinction for the American Continental Army and rose to the rank of ...
and local Tories during the
American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
to conduct raids on Yankee-held
Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
. Among Benedict Arnold's headquarters was a local tavern owned and operated by the Vail family on what is now known as "Village Lane". Many of the hamlet's older structures are included in the Orient Historic District, added to the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1976. Ferry service has connected Orient Point to southern
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
for over a century. The Cross Sound Ferry currently operates a vehicle/passenger ferry service between Orient Point and
New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the outlet of the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River in New London County, Connecticut, which empties into Long Island Sound. The cit ...
. This service has expanded in recent years with Sea Jet service being provided to the
Mohegan Sun Mohegan Sun is a large casino and entertainment complex located on 240 acres (97 ha) of the Mohegan Indian Reservation in Uncasville, Connecticut, along the banks of the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River. It is owned and operated by the fe ...
and Foxwoods Casino.


Geography

According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and 16.83%, or , is water.


Climate

Though Orient's climate is influenced by both subtropical and continental air, it has a
humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...
(''Dfa''), though due to the
Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
current it borders on
humid subtropical A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between la ...
(''Cfa''.) The CDP experiences moderately cold, damp winters and warm, humid summers. The temperatures tend to be more moderate, especially during summer days, than other parts of the island due to the CDP's coastal location and a constant onshore flow.


Demographics

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 709 people, 330 households, and 205 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 673 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 97.32%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.56%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.99% Asian, 0.28%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.56% from other races, and 0.28% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 0.99% of the population. There were 330 households, out of which 18.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.7% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.6% were non-families. 30.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.15 and the average family size was 2.69. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 18.1% under the age of 18, 2.8% from 18 to 24, 15.7% from 25 to 44, 29.1% from 45 to 64, and 34.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 54 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.1 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $45,461, and the median income for a family was $50,833. Males had a median income of $43,571 versus $31,111 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the CDP was $29,382. About 2.4% of families and 4.4% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including none of those under age 18 and 4.5% of those age 65 or over.


Education

The local school district for the census-designated place is the Oysterponds Union Free School District.
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Notable people

* Bill Hands, baseball player. * Robert Berks, sculptor, artist.Bob Berks, Orient artist who sculpted images of presidents and popes, dies at 89
/ref> *
Richard Serra Richard Serra (November 2, 1938 – March 26, 2024) was an American artist known for his large-scale Abstract art, abstract sculptures made for Site-specific art, site-specific landscape, urban, and Architecture, architectural settings, a ...
, died here in 2024.


References


External links


Oysterponds (Orient) Historical Society
{{authority control Southold, New York Census-designated places in New York (state) Long Island Sound Census-designated places in Suffolk County, New York Populated coastal places in New York (state)