Dan's Papers - June 27, 2008 - Southampton: A CliffsNotes History from 1640

In 1640, a howling spring sea breeze blew through the riggings of the vessel that sailed from Lynn, Massachusetts to Cow Bay, carrying the founding fathers of a "plantation" that would come to be known by the name of Southampton.

God-fearing men who were to spend much of the early years in living quarters dug into the earth, had left Lynn, where they had settled in 1629, to pursue a dream. They landed on Conscience Point on June 12, 1640. Their names were Edward Howell, Edmond Farrington, Edmond Needham, Daniel How, Josias Stanborough, Thomas Saire, George Welbe, Henry Walton and Thomas Halsey. They came ashore with whatever they could fit on a ship to start a new way of life. At first, there were situations with the Dutch, who attempted to expel those they considered illegal immigrants, and the Shinnecocks, then referred to as "wild Indians." But these men were of strong stock and the colony was successfully settled at Old Town Pond.

Church services were first held in the home of Edward Howell, whose house was the first to be completed. They called their Puritanism "a church without a bishop, a state without a King." They fished, they hunted, they planted. The constitution of Southampton was considered not as liberal as that that of Plymouth, and the first minister, Abraham Pierson, held enormous power and influence, as only his church members could vote on town matters. Such was the Puritan way of life in those first 20 years of settlements in the northeast.

The first Presbyterian church was built on Town Street, now know as Main Street, in 1652. It was rebuilt in 1707, and the remaining wood was used to build the gothic church in 1843. The first meeting house is believed to have been constructed somewhere near the location of Southampton Hospital. Today the Halsey House is the oldest remaining home in Southampton. Much credit is given to Thomas Halsey and his relationship with the Shinnecocks, from whom he learned successful ways to grow corn (fertilizing it with fish), dig for clams and scallops, and plant potatoes.

Twenty-eight years after its settlers' initial arrival, the town purchased Wegwaganuck from the Indians who lived there, which was an area we now call Sag Harbor. By 1690, just 50 years after the first settlers came from Lynn, there were settlements in North Sea, Wickapogue, Water Mill, Cobb, Mecox, and Sagaponack. In 1701, Southampton created the first reservation for the Shinnecocks. In 1707, Sag Harbor became recognized as a settlement by documents in both Southampton and East Hampton.

Throughout the area, these brave pioneers battled attacks by the Pequot, Narragansett and Mohawk Indians, not to mention the French and Dutch. At the same time, they were building schools and churches, and clearing farmlands, all with the crudest of tools. Yet they survived by fishing, hunting and planting. By 1776, the census of the time stated that 1,434 people resided east of Water Mill, and 1,358 resided west.

During the Revolutionary War, Suffolk County sent 760 men into battle. Southampton men comprised three companies. Historian Henry Hedges summed up the occupation of the East End best with lines delivered in a speech in 1872: "Not until evacuation day were the pent-up patriot passions of this people released from the hydraulic pressure of British power. No town in the old 13 states welcomed independence with a louder shout than Southampton."

By 1808, Southampton was taking on its current appearance. The Hildreths and Corwins would plant roots 40 years in the future, but as President Jefferson was completing his last year in office, horses pulled wagons, oxen pulled ploughs and children rode mules down developing streets.

In the 1880s, wealthy New Yorkers started coming out to the tiny historic village to build mansions and golf courses. By 1896 there was regular train service not only to Southampton, but all the way out to Montauk. Soon, large trunks were shipped out for the very rich to spend the whole summer.

One hundred years ago on July 4, the town looked very much as it does today. Perhaps fireworks were purchased at Hildreth's. Perhaps Mr. Corwin was setting some diamonds on Main Street, in the same building that houses the family's jewelry store today. The Schwenk family dairy was providing milk and butchering meats. Rounds of golf were being played at both Shinnecock Hills Golf Club and National Golf Links. Tennis balls were hitting the grass courts on Gin Lane at the Meadow Club, home to 36 grass courts (more than there are at Wimbledon). In the next hundred years, many things changed while many managed to remain the same.