Speonk, New York
Encyclopedia
- For census related data, see the entry for Remsenburg-Speonk, New YorkRemsenburg-Speonk, New York----Remsenburg-Speonk is a census-designated place located in the Town of Southhampton, Suffolk County, New York. It consists of the hamlets of Remsenburg and Speonk. The population was 2,675 at the 2000 census...
Speonk (icon) is a hamlet located in the Town of Southampton
Southampton (town), New York
The Town of Southampton is located in southeastern Suffolk County, New York, U.S., partly on the South Fork of Long Island. As of the United States 2000 Census, the town had a total population of 54,712...
, 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...
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History
As early as 1712, meadows in Speonk were leased to cattle owners from Southampton. Most of the early residents came west from Southampton and Bridgehampton in the 1740s, building farms and clearing the forests of wood. In the 1880s, duck farms thrived in Speonk, but few survived past the turn of the century. The name Speonk was inspired by a Native American word meaning high place. An 1897 Long Island Rail RoadLong Island Rail Road
The Long Island Rail Road or LIRR is a commuter rail system serving the length of Long Island, New York. It is the busiest commuter railroad in North America, serving about 81.5 million passengers each year. Established in 1834 and having operated continuously since then, it is the oldest US...
catalog listed Speonk, noting that that name "certainly sounds like the call of a frog." Railroad conductors frequently accentuated the name when calling it out as the next station. Some residents pressed to change the name to Remsenburg, after prominent resident Charles Remsen donated a new Presbyterian Church. Today, both names remain is use, each covering different areas of the community. (An insignificant minority of residents in nearby Westhampton Beach have pushed for renaming their community East Speonk, which they consider a more desirable association than the overblown "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,...
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