Southampton, officially the Town of Southampton, is a

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 ...

in southeastern

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 ...

, partly on the South Fork of

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 ...

. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the town had a population of 69,036. Southampton is included in the stretch of shoreline prominently known as

the Hamptons The Hamptons, part of the East End (Long Island), East End of Long Island, consist of the town (New York), towns of Southampton (town), New York, Southampton and East Hampton (town), New York, East Hampton, which together compose the South Fork ...

Stony Brook University Stony Brook University (SBU), officially the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is a public university, public research university in Stony Brook, New York, United States, on Long Island. Along with the University at Buffalo, it is on ...

has a campus in Southampton.

History

The town was founded in 1640, when settlers from Lynn,

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

, established residence on lands obtained from local

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 ...

. The first settlers included eight men, one woman, and a boy who came ashore at Conscience Point. These men were Thomas Halsey, Edward Howell, Edmond Farrington, Allen Bread, Edmund Needham, Abraham Pierson the Elder, Thomas Sayre, Josiah Stanborough, George Welbe, Henry Walton and Job Sayre. By July 7, 1640, they had determined the town boundaries. During the next few years (1640–43), Southampton gained another 43 families; there are now thousands of people in Southampton. From 1644, the colonists established an organized whale fishery, significant in the history of whaling as the first in

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 ...

. They chased

pilot whale Pilot whales are cetaceans belonging to the genus ''Globicephala''. The two Extant taxon, extant species are the long-finned pilot whale (''G. melas'') and the short-finned pilot whale (''G. macrorhynchus''). The two are not readily distinguish ...

s ("blackfish") onto the shelving beaches for slaughter, a sort of

dolphin drive hunting Dolphin drive hunting, also called dolphin drive fishing, is a method of hunting Dolphin, dolphins—and occasionally other small Cetacea, cetaceans—by herding them toward the shore with boats, typically into a bay or onto a beach. Their escape ...

. They also processed

drift whale A drift whale is a whale, cetacean mammal that has died at sea and floated into shore. This is in contrast to a Cetacean stranding, beached or stranded whale, which reaches land alive and may die there or regain safety in the ocean. Most cetacea ...

s they found on shore. They observed the Native Americans' hunting techniques, improved on their weapons and boats, and then went out to ocean hunting. The first

meeting house A meeting house (also spelled meetinghouse or meeting-house) is a building where religious and sometimes private meetings take place. Terminology Nonconformist (Protestantism), Nonconformist Protestant denominations distinguish between a: * chu ...

was on a hill that is the site of the current Southampton Hospital. The town's oldest existent house is the Halsey House at 249 Main Street, which was built by Thomas Halsey, one of the first Englishmen to trade with the Shinnecocks. Shinnecock Hills GC 01

Southampton has 47 public and private cemeteries, not including Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, which is claimed as an Indian burial ground that is no longer in active use.Longislandgolfnews.com
Southampton is named after the port city of

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, ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, England. Southampton operates an official historical web site. The site shows the locations of over 100 points of interest, historic markers, and historic districts as well as over 1500 photos.

Native American land claim

In 2005, the

filed a lawsuit against the state seeking the return of 3,500 acres (14 km²) in Southampton near the tribe's reservation, and billions of dollars in reparations for damages suffered by colonial land grabs. The disputed property includes the Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, which Shinnecock say is the location of tribe burial grounds. The tribe challenged the state legislatures' approval of an 1859 sale of the 3,500 acres of tribal land. The tribe alleged this broke the terms of a 1,000-year-lease signed by Southampton colonial officials and the tribe in 1703. The suit charged that in 1859, a group of powerful New York investors conspired to break the lease by sending the state Legislature a fraudulent petition from a number of Shinnecock tribal members. Although other tribal members immediately protested that the petition was a forgery, the legislature approved the sale of 3,500 acres (14 km²) of tribal land. In 2006, the court ruled against the tribe finding the lawsuit was barred by laches.

Geography

Southampton is bounded by 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 ...

to the south, the

Peconic Bay The Peconic Bay is the parent name for two bays (Great Peconic Bay and Little Peconic Bay) between the North Fork, Suffolk County, New York, North Fork and South Fork, Suffolk County, New York, South Fork of Long Island in Suffolk County, New Yor ...

to the north, East Hampton to the east, and Brookhaven to the west. It also shares a small border with Riverhead to the northwest. 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 town has an area of , of which is land and (52.59%) is water. Southampton contains seven incorporated villages and 16 unincorporated areas, which are called

hamlets A hamlet is a human settlement that is smaller than a town or village. This is often simply an informal description of a smaller settlement or possibly a subdivision or satellite entity to a larger settlement. Sometimes a hamlet is defined f ...

in New York state.

Villages (incorporated)

* North Haven * Quogue * Sag Harbor – ''east of Division Street is in the Town of East Hampton'' * Sagaponack *

(village) *

Westhampton Beach Westhampton Beach is an incorporated village in the Town of Southampton, in Suffolk County, on the South Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,721. History Westhampton Beach Village ...

* West Hampton Dunes

Hamlets (unincorporated)

* Bridgehampton * Eastport – ''partially, with the Town of Brookhaven'' * East Quogue *

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

* Hampton Bays *

Northampton Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

* Noyack – ''also spelled Noyac'' * Quiogue * Remsenburg – ''also see Remsenburg-Speonk'' * Riverside * Shinnecock Hills * Speonk – ''also see Remsenburg-Speonk'' * Tuckahoe *

Water Mill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production ...

* Westhampton

Climate

The Town of Southampton has a hot-summer

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'') bordering a

humid subtropical climate 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 ...

(''Cfa''). It has one to two months averaging below freezing, six months above , and one to two months above .

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 54,712 people, 21,504 households and 13,805 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 35,836 housing units at an average density of . The town's racial makeup was 87.98%

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 ...

, 6.62%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 0.41% Native American, 0.89% Asian, 0.08%

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 ...

, 2.28% from other races, and 1.73% from two or more races. There were 21,504 households, of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.8% 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, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.8% were non-families. 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.2% 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 2.99. In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.1% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males. The town's median household income was $53,887, and the median family income was $65,144. Males had a median income of $47,167 versus $32,054 for females. The town's

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 ...

was $31,320. About 5.3% of families and 8.3% 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 10.2% of those under age 18 and 6.0% of those age 65 or over. In 2016, according to ''

Business Insider ''Business Insider'' (stylized in all caps: BUSINESS INSIDER; known from 2021 to 2023 as INSIDER) is a New York City–based multinational financial and business news website founded in 2007. Since 2015, a majority stake in ''Business Inside ...

'', the 11962 zip code encompassing Sagaponack, within Southampton, was listed as the most expensive in the U.S., with a median home sale price of $8.5 million.

Economy

Major employers in Southampton include :

Government

The town supervisor is Maria Z. Moore, a registered member of the Democratic Party, who was elected in November 2023 with 56.99% of the vote against Republican Cynthia Mc Namara.

Media

Print

* ''The Southampton Press''

Radio stations

* Bridgehampton - WBAZ (102.5 FM) * Hampton Bays - WLIR (107.1 FM) * Sag Harbor - WLNG (92.1 FM) * Southampton - WHFM (95.3 FM), WLIW (88.3 FM), WRLI (91.3 FM) * Westhampton - WBON (98.5 FM)

Infrastructure

Transportation

Railroad lines

The

Long Island Rail Road The Long Island Rail Road , or LIRR, is a Rail transport, railroad in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk County on Long Islan ...

's sole line in the Town of Southampton is the

Montauk Branch The Montauk Branch is a rail line owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The line runs the length of Long Island, 115 miles (185 km) from Long Island City to Montauk. However, in LIRR maps and sche ...

, which includes stations in Speonk, Westhampton, Hampton Bays,

and Bridgehampton. Quogue and Southampton Campus also had their own stations until 1998.

Bus service

The Town of Southampton is served primarily by

Suffolk County Transit Suffolk County Transit is the provider of bus services in Suffolk County, New York, on Long Island and is an agency of the Suffolk County government. It was founded in 1980 as a county-run oversight and funding agency for a group of private con ...

bus routes, although Hampton Jitney buses are available for trips to and from

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Major roads

New York State Route 24 New York State Route 24 (NY 24) is a east–west State highway (US), state highway on Long Island in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The highway is split into two segments; the longer western section extends from an I ...

New York State Route 27 New York State Route 27 (NY 27) is a long state highway that runs east–west from Interstate 278 (I-278) in the borough (New York City), New York City borough of Brooklyn to Montauk Point State Park on Long Island, New York ( ...

New York State Route 114 * Suffolk County 38

County Route 38 (Suffolk County, New York) * Suffolk County 51

County Route 51 (Suffolk County, New York) * Suffolk County 79

County Route 79 (Suffolk County, New York) * Suffolk County 80

Montauk Highway Montauk Highway is an east–west road extending for across the southern shore of Long Island in Suffolk County, New York, in the United States. It extends from the Amityville, New York, Amityville–Copiague, New York, Copiague line, where ...

, including

County Route 80 (Suffolk County, New York) A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) ''Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denotin ...

County Route 104 (Suffolk County, New York) * Suffolk County 105

County Route 105 (Suffolk County, New York)

Airports

The town of Southampton contains the Francis S. Gabreski Airport north of Westhampton, and East Hampton Airport along the Southampton-East Hampton Town Line. The Southampton Heliport can also be found on the east side of the

Shinnecock Inlet Shinnecock Inlet is the easternmost of five major inlets connecting bays to the Atlantic Ocean through the narrow Outer Barrier that stretches from New York City to Southampton, New York on the south shore of Long Island. It splits Westhampton Isl ...

Ferries

The sole ferry in the Town of Southampton takes NY 114 drivers across the Shelter Island Sound between North Haven and Shelter Island.

Notable people

* Riley Biggs, American football player * Tim Bishop, U.S. Representative * Amanda Clark, Olympic sailor *

Mary L. Cleave Mary Louise Cleave (February 5, 1947 – November 27, 2023) was an American engineer and NASA astronaut. She also served from 2005 to 2007 as NASA Associate Administrator for the Science Mission Directorate. Early life Cleave was born in Southam ...

, engineer and NASA astronaut * Pyrrhus Concer, former slave * Pamela Council, artist *

Scott Disick Scott Michael Disick (born May 26, 1983) is an American media personality and socialite widely known for his role as a main cast member on ''Keeping Up with the Kardashians'' and its spinoffs. Disick's popularity on ''Keeping Up with the Kardas ...

, reality television celebrity *

Michael J. Fox Michael Andrew Fox (born June 9, 1961), known professionally as Michael J. Fox, is a Canadian and American actor and activist. Beginning his career as a child actor in the 1970s, he rose to prominence portraying Alex P. Keaton on the NBC sitcom ...

, actor * Paul Gibson, Major League baseball pitcher * Grenville Goodwin, anthropologist * Nicoll Halsey, U.S. Representative * George Rogers Howell, historian * Andre Johnson, NFL football player * John William Kilbreth, U.S. Army brigadier general *

Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...

, fashion designer * David Koch, billionaire *

Howard Lutnick Howard William Lutnick (born July 14, 1961) is an American businessman, philanthropist, and government official who has served as the 41st United States Secretary of Commerce, United States secretary of commerce since February 2025. In 1983, Lu ...

, billionaire businessman * Orson Desaix Munn II, publisher *

Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American writer, book editor, and socialite who served as the first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A popular f ...

First Lady of the United States First Lady of the United States (FLOTUS) is a title typically held by the wife of the president of the United States, concurrent with the president's term in office. Although the first lady's role has never been Code of law, codified or offici ...

(1961–63) *

Jean Shafiroff Jean Shafiroff (née Lutri) is an American philanthropist, author, advocate, and socialite. Serving on multiple national and regional philanthropic boards, she is the ambassador and spokesperson for American Humane , American Humane Feed the Hu ...

, philanthropist and socialite * Howard Stein, financier *

Howard Stern Howard Allan Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American broadcaster and media personality. He is best known for his radio show, ''The Howard Stern Show'', which gained popularity when it was nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from 1 ...

, radio host *

Carlos Eduardo Stolk Carlos Eduardo Stolk Mendoza (4 April 1912 – 9 November 1995) was a lawyer, diplomat and business magnate who is well-known for his role as a delegate during World War II, as a founding representative of the United Nations and as chairman to ...

, business magnate * Carole Terry, musician * Foots Walker, NBA basketball player *

P. G. Wodehouse Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse ( ; 15 October 1881 – 14 February 1975) was an English writer and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Je ...

, writer * Zach Erdem, restaurateur and reality television celebrity *

Carl Yastrzemski Carl Michael Yastrzemski Sr. ( ; born August 22, 1939), nicknamed "Yaz", is an American former professional baseball player who played his entire career with the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He started his career primarily as a ...

, Hall of Fame Major League baseball player

References

External links

Town of Southampton (official site)

Pictures and Info on Southampton's Historic Estates
{{DEFAULTSORT:Southampton (Town), New York Towns on Long Island Towns in Suffolk County, New York Towns in New York (state) Towns in the New York metropolitan area Populated coastal places in New York (state) 1640 establishments in the British Empire