Amagansett, New York
Encyclopedia
Amagansett is a census-designated place
that roughly corresponds to the hamlet (unincorporated community) by the same name in the town of East Hampton
in Suffolk County
, New York
on the South Shore
of Long Island
. As of the United States 2000 Census, the CDP population was 1,067. Amagansett hamlet was founded in 1680.
The area is sometimes referred to as Skimhampton. However this specifically refers to the area south of the Montauk Highway
along Skimhampton Road. The artist Childe Hassam
, who lived on Egypt Lane in East Hampton village
, painted the area during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Portions of Skimhampton and the area on the northwest side of Amagansett hamlet are within the census-designated place of East Hampton North
.
Amagansett derives its name from the Montaukett
name for "place of good water" from a water source near what today is Indian Wells beach.
Unlike the rest of the Hamptons
, Amagansett was initially settled by the Baker, Conklin, and Barnes families, descendants of English settlers, and the Dutch
brothers Abraham and Jacob Schellinger, the sons of a New Amsterdam
merchant who moved to East Hampton between 1680 and 1690 after the English took over New Amsterdam. http://hamptonstravelguide.com/Communities/Amagansett.shtml
During Operation Pastorius
, a failed Nazi attack on the United States staged in June 1942, during World War II
, four German spies were dropped off from a submarine on Atlantic Avenue beach in Amagansett, where they made their way to the village's Long Island Rail Road station
and boarded a train for New York. A Coast Guardsman assigned to watch the beach noticed the suspicious strangers on the beach and notified the police and the FBI. In the Spring of 2007 the original Coast Guard
station, which had been moved to a private residence in 1966 to protect it from demolition, was moved back to near its original location at Atlantic Avenue beach. The Coast Guard barracks are now part of the East Hampton Town Marine Museum which includes exhibits from the town maritime history including whaling relics and a canon from the American Revolution
ship HMS Culloden
which ran aground at Montauk, New York
.
In 1998 President Bill Clinton
who was vacationing in East Hampton gave a Saturday radio address from the Amagansett Fire House. On the same visit, Alec Baldwin
and Kim Basinger
hosted a dinner for the President at their home in the Stony Hill section of the hamlet. In 1999 President Clinton made his second visit to Amagansett and found time to play a round of golf at South Fork CC. He was joined by local prodigy Matthew Scott. When asked about his experience with the nation's 42nd President, Scott replied, "He was taller than I expected, which I didn't appreciate."
Amagansett includes a section of Further Lane, which is a block from the ocean, and has one of the biggest collections of mansions in East Hampton. In 2007, one of the estates sold for a $107 million which was the highest price for a private residential property. As part of the settlement, several 18th and 19th century buildings which had been moved to the estate to prevent demolition were moved elsewhere in the town—including five that were moved to form a campus for the East Hampton town government.
"Amagansett", a pictorial history of the hamlet, was published in 1997 by Carleton Kelsey, longtime director of the Amagansett Free Library and former town clerk, and Lucinda Mayo, descendant of one of Amagansett's 17th century founders
Many houses and other buildings still stand from the 19th and even 18th century in Amagansett, Montauk, the Hamptons and other Long Island communities.
, Kathleen Turner
, James Frey
, Jerry Seinfeld
, Christie Brinkley
, Diane Sawyer
, Gwyneth Paltrow
and Chris Martin
, Sarah Jessica Parker
and Matthew Broderick
, Jann Wenner
, Suzanne Vega
and Lorne Michaels
. Marilyn Monroe
and Randy Lerner
and Arthur Miller
spent a summer there in the late 1950s. Perhaps the first wave of "summer people" was the "Devon Colony", which was founded in the late 19th century by executives of the Procter & Gamble
company.
Other notable residents include:
, the hamlet has a total area of 8.1 square miles (21 km²), of which 6.3 square miles (16.3 km²) is land and 1.8 square miles (4.7 km²) (21.86%) is water.
At the end of the last ice age, Amagansett stood at the eastern tip of Long Island. At that time, Montauk was an island on its own in the Atlantic. In the intervening several thousand years, ocean currents, or littoral drift, filled in space with sand. This area is now known as Napeague
.
Distinct places within Amagansett include Amagansett village, Beach Hampton, and the Devon Colony on Gardiner's Bay. Other places of geographic significance include the "Walking Dunes" in Napeague and the Atlantic Double Dunes, which is protected by the Nature Conservancy and local and federal governments.
of 2000, there were 1,067 people, 493 households, and 281 families residing in the CDP. The population density
was 169.6 per square mile (65.5/km²). There were 1,664 housing units at an average density of 264.5/sq mi (102.1/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 96.44% White, 1.69% African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.37% Asian, 0.28% from other races
, and 0.94% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.03% of the population.
There were 493 households out of which 21.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.1% were married couples
living together, 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.0% were non-families. 34.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 2.78.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 19.1% under the age of 18, 3.2% from 18 to 24, 22.3% from 25 to 44, 33.0% from 45 to 64, and 22.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48 years. For every 100 females there were 102.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $56,406, and the median income for a family was $69,306. Males had a median income of $48,750 versus $36,500 for females. The per capita income
for the CDP was $45,545. About 2.4% of families and 5.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.7% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
that roughly corresponds to the hamlet (unincorporated community) by the same name in the town of East Hampton
East Hampton (town), New York
The Town of East Hampton is located in southeastern Suffolk County, New York, at the eastern end of the South Shore of Long Island. It is the easternmost town in the state of New York...
in Suffolk County
Suffolk County, New York
Suffolk County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York on the eastern portion of Long Island. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,493,350. It was named for the county of Suffolk in England, from which its earliest settlers came...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
on the South Shore
South Shore (Long Island)
The South Shore of Long Island, in the U.S. state of New York, is the area along Long Island's Atlantic Ocean shoreline. Though some consider the South Shore to include parts of Queens, particularly the beach communities in the Rockaways such as Belle Harbor, the term is generally used to refer to...
of Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
. As of the United States 2000 Census, the CDP population was 1,067. Amagansett hamlet was founded in 1680.
The area is sometimes referred to as Skimhampton. However this specifically refers to the area south of the Montauk Highway
Montauk Highway
Montauk Highway is one of the original through highways of Long Island, New York, extending from Jamaica, in the New York City borough of Queens to Montauk Point in Suffolk County, a distance of approximately 100 miles ....
along Skimhampton Road. The artist Childe Hassam
Childe Hassam
Frederick Childe Hassam was a prolific American Impressionist painter, noted for his urban and coastal scenes. Along with Mary Cassatt and John Henry Twachtman, Hassam was instrumental in promulgating Impressionism to American collectors, dealers, and museums...
, who lived on Egypt Lane in East Hampton village
East Hampton (village), New York
The Village of East Hampton is a village in Town of East Hampton, New York. It is located in Suffolk County, on the South Fork of eastern Long Island...
, painted the area during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Portions of Skimhampton and the area on the northwest side of Amagansett hamlet are within the census-designated place of East Hampton North
East Hampton North, New York
East Hampton North is a census-designated place in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 3,587 as of the 2000 census.- Geography :East Hampton North is located at ....
.
History
Montaukett
The Montaukett is an Algonquian-speaking Native American group native to the eastern end of Long Island, New York and one of the thirteen historical indigenous centers...
name for "place of good water" from a water source near what today is Indian Wells beach.
Unlike the rest of the Hamptons
Hamptons
The Hamptons may refer to several villages and hamlets in the towns of Southampton and East Hampton on the far east end of Suffolk County in Long Island, New York. These townships occupy the South Fork of Long Island, stretching into the Atlantic Ocean. The Hamptons form a popular seaside resort,...
, Amagansett was initially settled by the Baker, Conklin, and Barnes families, descendants of English settlers, and the Dutch
Dutch people
The Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
brothers Abraham and Jacob Schellinger, the sons of a New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam was a 17th-century Dutch colonial settlement that served as the capital of New Netherland. It later became New York City....
merchant who moved to East Hampton between 1680 and 1690 after the English took over New Amsterdam. http://hamptonstravelguide.com/Communities/Amagansett.shtml
During Operation Pastorius
Operation Pastorius
Operation Pastorius was a failed plan for sabotage via a series of attacks by Nazi German agents inside the United States. The operation was staged in June 1942 and was to be directed against strategic U.S. economic targets...
, a failed Nazi attack on the United States staged in June 1942, during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, four German spies were dropped off from a submarine on Atlantic Avenue beach in Amagansett, where they made their way to the village's Long Island Rail Road station
Amagansett (LIRR station)
Amagansett is a station on the Montauk Branch of the Long Island Railroad, at Main Street and Abrahms Landing Road in Amagansett, New York.-History:...
and boarded a train for New York. A Coast Guardsman assigned to watch the beach noticed the suspicious strangers on the beach and notified the police and the FBI. In the Spring of 2007 the original Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
station, which had been moved to a private residence in 1966 to protect it from demolition, was moved back to near its original location at Atlantic Avenue beach. The Coast Guard barracks are now part of the East Hampton Town Marine Museum which includes exhibits from the town maritime history including whaling relics and a canon from the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
ship HMS Culloden
HMS Culloden (1776)
HMS Culloden was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Deptford Dockyard, England, and launched on 18 May 1776...
which ran aground at Montauk, New York
Montauk, New York
Montauk [ˈmɒntɒk] is a census-designated place that roughly corresponds to the hamlet with the same name located in the town of East Hampton in Suffolk County, New York, United States on the South Shore of Long Island. As of the United States 2000 Census, the CDP population was 3,851 as of 2000...
.
In 1998 President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
who was vacationing in East Hampton gave a Saturday radio address from the Amagansett Fire House. On the same visit, Alec Baldwin
Alec Baldwin
Alexander Rae "Alec" Baldwin III is an American actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television.Baldwin first gained recognition through television for his work in the soap opera Knots Landing in the role of Joshua Rush. He was a cast member for two seasons before his character was killed off...
and Kim Basinger
Kim Basinger
Kimila Ann "Kim" Basinger is an American actress and former fashion model.She is known for her portrayals of Domino Petachi, the Bond girl in Never Say Never Again , and Vicki Vale, the female lead in Batman . Basinger received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture...
hosted a dinner for the President at their home in the Stony Hill section of the hamlet. In 1999 President Clinton made his second visit to Amagansett and found time to play a round of golf at South Fork CC. He was joined by local prodigy Matthew Scott. When asked about his experience with the nation's 42nd President, Scott replied, "He was taller than I expected, which I didn't appreciate."
Amagansett includes a section of Further Lane, which is a block from the ocean, and has one of the biggest collections of mansions in East Hampton. In 2007, one of the estates sold for a $107 million which was the highest price for a private residential property. As part of the settlement, several 18th and 19th century buildings which had been moved to the estate to prevent demolition were moved elsewhere in the town—including five that were moved to form a campus for the East Hampton town government.
"Amagansett", a pictorial history of the hamlet, was published in 1997 by Carleton Kelsey, longtime director of the Amagansett Free Library and former town clerk, and Lucinda Mayo, descendant of one of Amagansett's 17th century founders
Many houses and other buildings still stand from the 19th and even 18th century in Amagansett, Montauk, the Hamptons and other Long Island communities.
Residents
A popular resort location, many famous people have resided in or owned second homes in Amagansett through the years, including Paul McCartneyPaul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
, Kathleen Turner
Kathleen Turner
Mary Kathleen Turner is an American actress. She came to fame during the 1980s, after roles in the Hollywood films Body Heat, Peggy Sue Got Married, Romancing the Stone, The War of the Roses, Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Prizzi's Honor...
, James Frey
James Frey
James Christopher Frey is an American writer. His books A Million Little Pieces and My Friend Leonard , as well as Bright Shiny Morning , were bestsellers...
, Jerry Seinfeld
Jerry Seinfeld
Jerome Allen "Jerry" Seinfeld is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and television and film producer, known for playing a semi-fictional version of himself in the situation comedy Seinfeld , which he co-created and co-wrote with Larry David, and, in the show's final two seasons,...
, Christie Brinkley
Christie Brinkley
Christie Brinkley is an American model and actress best known for her three consecutive appearances on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in the late 1970s and early 1980s, for her long-running contract with CoverGirl, the longest ever of any model in history, and for her marriage...
, Diane Sawyer
Diane Sawyer
Lila Diane Sawyer is the current anchor of ABC News' flagship program, ABC World News. Previously, Sawyer had been co-anchor of ABC Newss morning news program, Good Morning America ....
, Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Kate Paltrow is an American actress and singer. She made her acting debut on stage in 1990 and started appearing in films in 1991. After appearing in several films throughout the decade, Paltrow gained early notice for her work in films such as Se7en and Emma...
and Chris Martin
Chris Martin
Christopher Anthony John "Chris" Martin is an English song-writer, who is the lead vocalist, pianist and rhythm guitarist of the band Coldplay. He is married to actress Gwyneth Paltrow.-Early life:...
, Sarah Jessica Parker
Sarah Jessica Parker
Sarah Jessica Parker is an American film, television, and theater actress and producer.She is best known for her leading role as Carrie Bradshaw on the HBO television series Sex and the City , for which she won four Golden Globe Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two Emmy Awards...
and Matthew Broderick
Matthew Broderick
Matthew Broderick is an American film and stage actor who, among other roles, played the title character in Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Adult Simba in The Lion King film series, and Leo Bloom in the film and Broadway productions of The Producers.He has won two Tony Awards, one in 1983 for his...
, Jann Wenner
Jann Wenner
Jann Simon Wenner is the co-founder and publisher of the music and politics biweekly Rolling Stone, as well as the owner of Men's Journal and Us Weekly magazines.-Childhood:...
, Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Nadine Vega is an American songwriter and singer known for her eclectic folk-inspired music.Two of Vega's songs reached the top 10 of various international chart listings: "Luka" and "Tom's Diner"...
and Lorne Michaels
Lorne Michaels
Lorne Michaels, CM is a Canadian-American television producer, writer, and comedian best known for creating and producing Saturday Night Live and producing the various film and TV projects that spun off from it.-Early life:...
. Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
and Randy Lerner
Randy Lerner
Randolph D. Lerner is an American entrepreneur and sports team owner.Lerner has been the owner of the American football team, the Cleveland Browns, of the National Football League since October 2002, and the Chairman of Aston Villa Football Club of the English Premier League since 2006...
and Arthur Miller
Arthur Miller
Arthur Asher Miller was an American playwright and essayist. He was a prominent figure in American theatre, writing dramas that include plays such as All My Sons , Death of a Salesman , The Crucible , and A View from the Bridge .Miller was often in the public eye,...
spent a summer there in the late 1950s. Perhaps the first wave of "summer people" was the "Devon Colony", which was founded in the late 19th century by executives of the Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble is a Fortune 500 American multinational corporation headquartered in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio and manufactures a wide range of consumer goods....
company.
Other notable residents include:
- Alfred ConklingAlfred ConklingAlfred Conkling was a lawyer, statesman and United States federal judge from New York.-Early life, education, and career:...
(1789–1874), born in Amagansett, United States Congressman from New York
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the hamlet has a total area of 8.1 square miles (21 km²), of which 6.3 square miles (16.3 km²) is land and 1.8 square miles (4.7 km²) (21.86%) is water.
At the end of the last ice age, Amagansett stood at the eastern tip of Long Island. At that time, Montauk was an island on its own in the Atlantic. In the intervening several thousand years, ocean currents, or littoral drift, filled in space with sand. This area is now known as Napeague
Napeague, New York
Napeague is a census-designated place that roughly corresponds to the hamlet with the same name in the town of East Hampton in Suffolk County, New York, United States...
.
Distinct places within Amagansett include Amagansett village, Beach Hampton, and the Devon Colony on Gardiner's Bay. Other places of geographic significance include the "Walking Dunes" in Napeague and the Atlantic Double Dunes, which is protected by the Nature Conservancy and local and federal governments.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 1,067 people, 493 households, and 281 families residing in the CDP. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 169.6 per square mile (65.5/km²). There were 1,664 housing units at an average density of 264.5/sq mi (102.1/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 96.44% White, 1.69% African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.37% Asian, 0.28% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.94% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.03% of the population.
There were 493 households out of which 21.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.1% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.0% were non-families. 34.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 2.78.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 19.1% under the age of 18, 3.2% from 18 to 24, 22.3% from 25 to 44, 33.0% from 45 to 64, and 22.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48 years. For every 100 females there were 102.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $56,406, and the median income for a family was $69,306. Males had a median income of $48,750 versus $36,500 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the CDP was $45,545. About 2.4% of families and 5.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.7% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.