Shinnecock Hills 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 ...

) in

Suffolk County, New York Suffolk County ( ) is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of New York, constituting the eastern two-thirds of Long Island. It is bordered to its west by Nassau County, to its east by Gardiners Bay and the open Atlantic Ocean, to its no ...

, United States. The population was 2,188 at the 2010 census. It is the home of a leading golf club, Shinnecock Hills Golf Club. Ownership of the area has been the subject of a 2005 lawsuit filed by the

Shinnecock Indian Nation The Shinnecock Indian Nation is a federally recognized tribe of historically Algonquian peoples, Algonquian-speaking Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans based at the eastern end of Long Island, New York. This tribe is headq ...

. Shinnecock Hills is in the

Town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

Geography

Shinnecock Hills is located at (40.888100, -72.461735), immediately east of the Shinnecock Canal. 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 , or 6.61%, is water. The highest point in Shinnecock Hills is above sea level.U.S. Geological Survey Southampton quadrangle, 2010.

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 1,749 people, 502 households, and 313 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 928 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 89.99%

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 ...

, 4.23%

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 ...

, 0.97% Native American, 0.97% Asian, 2.17% from other races, and 1.66% 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 10.41% of the population. There were 502 households, out of which 24.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.8% 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, 6.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.6% were non-families. 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.00. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 13.8% under the age of 18, 34.0% from 18 to 24, 17.6% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females, there were 82.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.8 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $72,500, and the median income for a family was $89,211. Males had a median income of $51,172 versus $32,500 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 $28,378. About 7.7% of families and 13.9% 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 19.7% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.

Land claim dispute

There is a question mark over ownership of the area of Shinnecock Hills, as it is claimed by the

as their land that was seized in a white land grab in 1859. In 2005 the nation filed a lawsuit against the state seeking the return of in Southampton around the tribe's reservation and billions of dollars in reparations. The disputed property includes the Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, which Native American representatives say is the location of tribal burial grounds.
The core of the lawsuit is over a 1703 deal between Southampton and the tribe for a 1,000-year lease. The suit charges that a group of powerful investors conspired to break the lease in 1859 by sending the state legislature a fraudulent petition from a number of Shinnecock tribesmen. Although other tribal members immediately protested that the petition was a forgery, the Legislature approved the sale of of former tribal land. The town of

is claimed to have spent over $732,000 in legal fees in relation to this lawsuit.

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in New York (state) Hamlets in New York (state) Census-designated places in Suffolk County, New York Hamlets in Suffolk County, New York Populated coastal places in New York (state)