Oyster Bay (town), New York

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Town of Oyster Bay, New York
Sagamore Hill
Town of Oyster Bay, New York
Coordinates: 40°45′34″N 73°30′10″W / 40.75944, -73.50278
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Nassau
Area
- Total	169.5 sq mi (439.0 km²)
- Land	104.4 sq mi (270.3 km²)
- Water	65.1 sq mi (168.7 km²)
Elevation	180 ft (55 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	293,925
- Density	2,816.2/sq mi (1,087.3/km²)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	11771
Area code(s)	516
FIPS code	36-56000
GNIS feature ID	0979336

Map showing the Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County : the town is bordered on the east by Suffolk, on the south east by the town of Hempstead, on the north east by the town of North Hempstead and surrounds the city of Glen Cove

This article refers to the Town of Oyster Bay. For the hamlet named Oyster Bay within the town, see Oyster Bay (hamlet), New York.

The Town of Oyster Bay is one of three towns in Nassau County, New York on Long Island, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 293,925.

Oyster Bay is also the name of a hamlet on the north shore within the Town of Oyster Bay. Nearby this hamlet, in the Village of Cove Neck, is the former residence and summer White House of Theodore Roosevelt, Sagamore Hill, now a museum. At least six of the 36 villages and hamlets of the Town of Oyster Bay have shores on Oyster Bay Harbor, an inlet of Long Island Sound, and many of these at one time or another have also been referred to as Oyster Bay.[1]

The town supervisor is currently, as of 2005, John Venditto, a Republican.

[edit] History

The area was originally part of the colony of New Amsterdam. The original patent for the town was granted in 1667, after the English took over the Dutch colony. During most of the American Revolution the town was under the control of English forces. The town was originally part of Queens County until the western portion of that county was amalgamated into New York City in 1898.

[edit] Geography

The Town of Oyster Bay extends from the Long Island Sound in the north, south to the waters of South Oyster Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered by the Town of North Hempstead on the northwest and Town of Hempstead on the southwest. It is the easternmost of the three towns of Nassau County, with Suffolk County, New York immediately to the east.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 169.5 square miles (439.0 km²), of which, 104.4 square miles (270.3 km²) of it is land and 65.1 square miles (168.7 km²) of it (38.42%) is water.

In 1918 Glen Cove incorporated as a city and formed a governing system separate from the town.

The Town of Oyster Bay contains the following 18 villages:

1. Bayville
2. Brookville
3. Centre Island
4. Cove Neck
5. East Hills (This village is shared with the Town of North Hempstead.)
6. Farmingdale
7. Lattingtown
8. Laurel Hollow
9. Massapequa Park
10. Matinecock
11. Mill Neck
12. Muttontown
13. Old Brookville
14. Old Westbury (This village is shared with the Town of North Hempstead.)
15. Oyster Bay Cove
16. Roslyn Harbor (This village is shared with the Town of North Hempstead.)
17. Sea Cliff
18. Upper Brookville

The Town of Oyster Bay also contains the following hamlets:

1. Bethpage
2. East Massapequa
3. East Norwich
4. Glen Head
5. Glenwood Landing (part)
6. Greenvale (part)
7. Hicksville
8. Jericho
9. Locust Valley
10. Massapequa
11. North Massapequa
12. Old Bethpage
13. Oyster Bay
14. Plainedge
15. Plainview
16. South Farmingdale
17. Syosset
18. Woodbury

Notes:

1. Sea Cliff - a small portion within the Town of Oyster Bay that is not part of this village has the same ZIP Code as the village.
2. Seaford - a small portion of Massapequa has the same ZIP Code as Seaford, which is in the Town of Hempstead.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 293,925 people, 99,355 households, and 80,278 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,816.2 people per square mile (1,087.3/km²). There were 101,076 housing units at an average density of 968.4/sq mi (373.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 90.83% White, 1.64% Black or African American, 0.07% Native American, 4.85% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.36% from other races, and 1.23% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.06% of the population.

There were 99,355 households out of which 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.9% were married couples living together, 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.2% were non-families. 16.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.93 and the average family size was 3.27.

In the town the population was spread out with 24.5% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.6 males.

According to a 2006 estimate, the median income for a household in the town was $97,934, and the median income for a family was $109,478.[2] Males had a median income of $60,726 versus $39,420 for females. The per capita income for the town was $35,895. About 2.0% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.0% of those under age 18 and 4.6% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Trivia

• Oyster Bay was the setting for the 2000 comedy Meet The Parents.
• Oyster Bay is mentioned prominently in the song "Billy the Kid" by Billy Joel.
• Oyster Bay is the setting for the song "Captain Jack by Billy Joel.
• Oyster Bay is the location of Phil Leotardo's assassination in the final episode of The Sopranos.
• Oyster Bay is mentioned in the movie "Wall Street"

[edit] References

1. ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.

[edit] External links

• Town of Oyster Bay official website
• Newsday article on Town of Oyster Bay
• Map of the Town of Oyster Bay
• The Oyster Bay Historical Society
• 1873 map of southern part of Town of Oyster Bay
• Historical photos from Town of Oyster Bay

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Nassau County, New York County seat: Mineola Cities Glen Cove | Long Beach Towns Hempstead (communities) | North Hempstead (communities) | Oyster Bay (communities)