| Shelter Island, NY | |||
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Shelter Island, NY
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| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | United States | ||
| State | New York | ||
| County | Suffolk | ||
| Government | |||
| • Type | Civil Township | ||
| • Supervisor | James Dougherty | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 27.1 sq mi (70.2 km2) | ||
| • Land | 12.1 sq mi (31.4 km2) | ||
| • Water | 15.0 sq mi (38.7 km2) | ||
| Elevation | 56 ft (17 m) | ||
| Population (2000) | |||
| • Total | 2,228 | ||
| • Density | 183.6/sq mi (70.9/km2) | ||
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) | ||
| ZIP code | 11964, 11965 | ||
| Area code(s) | 631 Exchange: 749 | ||
| FIPS code | |||
| GNIS feature ID | 0965037 | ||
| Website | http://www.shelterislandtown.us/ | ||
Shelter Island is a town and island at the eastern end of Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. It forms the tip of Suffolk County and is separated from the rest of the county by water. The population was 2,228 at the 2000 census.
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Shelter Island is nestled between the North and South Forks of Long Island. The island is surrounded on three sides by Shelter Island Sound and on the fourth side by Gardiners Bay. It can be reached via ferry from Greenport to the north (approximately 8-minute trip) or from North Haven to the south (approximately 5-minute trip). New York State Route 114 runs through the island.
The island is around 8,000 acres (32 km2) in size. Vast tracts are protected wetlands nature preserve marshland. Nearly one-third of the island is owned by The Nature Conservancy and kept in a forever-wild state. The Preserve has four nature and bird-watching trails, varying in length from 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to 11 miles (18 km), as well as a barrier-free Braille trail for the visually impaired.
According to the United States Census Bureau, Shelter Island has a total area of 27.1 square miles (70.2 km2), of which, 12.1 square miles (31.4 km2) of it is land and 15.0 square miles (38.7 km2) of it (55.20%) is water.
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 2,228 people, 996 households, and 656 families residing in the town. However, during the summer months the population can exceed 8,000. The population density was 183.6 people per square mile (70.9/km2). There were 2,370 housing units at an average density of 195.3 per square mile (75.4/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 96.32% White, 0.72% Black or African American, 0.04% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.09% from other races, and 2.33% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.38% of the population.
There were 996 households out of which 20.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.1% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.1% were non-families. 28.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.75.
In the town the population was spread out with 18.1% under the age of 18, 4.0% from 18 to 24, 20.1% from 25 to 44, 29.1% from 45 to 64, and 28.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 49 years. For every 100 females there were 91.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $53,011, and the median income for a family was $63,750. Males had a median income of $41,508 versus $36,316 for females. The per capita income for the town was $30,346. About 4.7% of families and 7.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.0% of those under age 18 and 1.4% of those age 65 or over.
Shelter Island was part of the original Plymouth Company land grant made by James I of England in 1620. On April 22, 1636, Charles I of England, told that the colony had not settled anywhere on Long Island, gave the island to William Alexander, the Earl of Stirling. The grant gave Alexander all of Long Island and adjacent islands. Alexander gave James Farret power to act as his agent and attorney in settling Long Island. In reward Farret was allowed to choose 12,000 acres (49 km2) for his personal use. Farret chose Shelter Island and Robin's Island for his use. Farret in turn sold the islands to Stephen Goodyear, one of the founders of the New Haven Colony.[2]
In 1651 Goodyear sold the island to a group of Barbados sugar merchants for 1,600 pounds of sugar. Nathaniel Sylvester (1610–1680), one of the merchants, was the island’s first white settler. On March 23, 1652, he made the purchase official by agreement with “Yoki” (called “Pogatticut”) who was the sachem of the Manhanset tribe. The other owners, Sylvester’s brother, Constant, and Thomas Middleton, never came to Long Island. In 1673 Nathaniel Sylvester claimed ownership of Shelter Island, Fishers Island, and other parts of Long Island.[3]
In 1652 Sylvester constructed a house on the island for his 16-year-old bride, Grissel Brinley. The manor house was rebuilt by his descendants about 1733. Sylvester Manor exists today, just off New York State Route 114. The Sylvesters gave shelter to many persecuted Quakers.
Following the death in 1680 of Nathaniel Sylvester, Shelter Island was divided among his two sons, Giles and Nathaniel II. In 1695, William Nicoll, a resident of Islip, bought from Giles the area now called Mashomack Nature Preserve. Three years later, in 1698, another newcomer, George Havens, bought 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) from Nathaniel II. This parcel comprises what today is the Center and stretched south to South Ferry and west to West Neck Creek. Over time these estates and parcels were split and divided by marriage and purchase so that by the early 18th century there were 20 families living on Shelter Island. By order of the Provincial Government, the town of Shelter Island was established in 1730. The community developed from there.[3]
James Nicoll Havens, a member of the New York Provincial Congress, built a home on the island in 1743. He was the first town supervisor on the island. His home is still on the island and is owned by the local historical society.
Jonathan Nicoll Havens (1757–1799), born on Shelter Island, was a member of the First Continental Congress in 1774. He also served in New York’s delegation that approved the federal constitution in 1788. Mashomack Forest (today Mashomack Nature Preserve) was owned by the Nicolls family for 230 years. A few Native Americans still lived in the wooded Sachem’s Neck area up until the 1790s. Nicolls Creek carries the family name.
Shelter Island had brushes with early Colonial military activity:
The first ferryboat to serve the island was run by the Boisseau family at Stearns Point, nearby Crescent Beach. The North Ferry began service to Greenport in 1868.
Shelter Island Heights started in 1871 as a summer resort developed by the Shelter Island Grove and Camp Meeting Association of the Methodist Episcopal Church. A group of Brooklyn businessmen purchased the Frederick Chase estate. For eight years the camp meetings took place on the island, before moving to Jamesport. During this time, the Union Chapel was erected in 1875, designed by Robert Morris Copeland. In 1984 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Shelter Island Heights was a planned development by Copeland. The houses that were built here were in classic American styles: Stick-Eastlake, Queen Anne Style, and Colonial Revival. In the eight years from 1872 to 1880 about 70 summer cottages were built in the Heights. By 1890 the district was well-defined; it has not changed much since then. Shelter Island Heights was listed on both the United States Register and the New York State Register of Historic Places in 1993.[4]
At the turn of the 20th century, fish processing plants were still on the island. One was located at the end of Burns Road, another on Big Ram Island, off what is today Tuthill Road. Summer residents could be brought to the island by steam ferries from New York City.
White Hill is the name of the hill that is above the North Ferry landing in Shelter Island Heights. At one time the Prospect Hotel was there, it burned down, was rebuilt, and was destroyed by fire a second time in 1942. Today it is a town park.
Francis Marion Smith (1846–1931) was known as the “Borax King” for his mining successes. Smith and his family bought a home on the island in 1892. He expanded it to more than 30 rooms and called his estate Presdeleau. By 1906 he owned more than 500 acres (2.0 km2) on the south side of the island. Today, Smith Cove and Smith Street carry on his name. The remains of his property are reinforced concrete retaining walls and a "Japanese" footbridge, built by Ernest L. Ransome about 1898, behind Merkle Lane. Smith also shipped in deer from California to hunt on his “deer park”; the descendants are still on the island.
Another 19th Century millionaire who had an estate on Shelter Island was Artemas Ward (1848–1925), a pioneer in mass-market advertising. Ward made millions by monopolizing all advertising on New York City elevated trains, subways, and streetcars. Ward had a large estate on the south side of the island. Ward wrote a biography of his great-grandfather, Major General Artemas Ward (1727–1800), a commander in the American Revolutionary War. Ward’s house still stands on Shelter Island.
Following World War I, development slowly crept onto the island. Summer camps were started in the 1920s, including Camp Quinipet, a United Methodist Church camp and retreat center on Rocky Point Road. On West Neck Harbor, developers Albert and Fred Dickerson built houses on what is today called Montclair Colony. Homes were built on Silver Beach, Ram Island, and Hilo Farms.
Following the Depression, some of the summer cottages were abandoned or left to rot. Recovery was slow, and it was not until after World War II that summer residents started returning in larger numbers. During the 1950s a farm cooperative grew lima beans on the island. This was the end of commercial farming on Shelter Island.
In the 1960s and 1970s more families started to move to Shelter Island and become year-round residents. The Gerard family owned the property at Sachem’s Neck that had once belonged to the Nicoll family for more than 200 years, and later to financier Otto Kahn. Developers eyed the 2,000 acres (8.1 km2). However, the land was purchased by The Nature Conservancy to keep the land a nature park in perpetuity; half of the funds to buy the forest was raised on the island to create Mashomack Preserve. The Preserve was acquired by The Nature Conservancy in January 1980.
Today, there are many Shelter Island residents who have family roots dating to island families of the American Revolution. Some summer residents are fifth generation seasonal visitors.
Politically, Shelter Island has been known as a center for political conservatism on Long Island. Residents have consistently voted Republican. In the 1996 presidential election, it was the only town on Long Island to vote for Bob Dole. However, in 2004, John Kerry became the first Democrat in recent history to win Shelter Island, even though he failed to receive as many votes as Al Gore did four years earlier throughout Long Island. In 2008 Democrat Barack Obama also won Shelter Island.
There are six places of worship on Shelter Island:
There is a Methodist camp, Camp Quinipet, on the northwestern tip of the island. It is used as a camp in the summer and as a retreat center for churches throughout the year.
There are six cemeteries on Shelter Island:
Shelter Island has been the home for many notable residents, both fulltime and part-time homeowners. Among them:
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