In 2012, Hurricane Sandy devastated much of the northern part of the Jersey Shore, spawning the demolition and rebuilding of entire neighborhoods, with reinvention on a physically and financially elevated, and economically upscale level; this process of gentrification escalated property values and transformed communities on the Jersey Shore into a second home for the New York financial community, akin to the more established Gold Coast and Hamptons on Long Island.[3]
The Jersey Shore is lined with over 40 different towns and communities, each with a different character, flavor, and vibe. Many towns cater extensively to summer tourists, while others are increasingly or completely full-year residential communities. The towns listed below are ordered geographically from north to south.
Perth Amboy, along with neighboring South Amboy across the Raritan River, make up The Amboys. Perth Amboy was a resort town in the 19th century and early 20th century, located on the northern edge of the Raritan Bayshore. Since the early 1990s Perth Amboy has seen redevelopment. Small businesses have started to open up, helped by the city’s designation as an urban enterprise zone. The waterfront has also seen a rebirth, with new parks, a new promenade and an expansion of the marina complementing the old Victorian homes along the bay. Local attractions include the Perth Amboy Ferry Slip and Kearny Cottage. The Raritan Yacht Club, it is one of the oldest yacht clubs in the United States.[4] As of 2023, hundreds of millions of dollars were being invested in the redevelopment of Perth Amboy’s waterfront area, in part related to its strategically-located industrial area.[5] On October 30, 2023, NY Waterway launched a new ferry service in South Amboy, which connects to Lower and MidtownManhattan.[6] Both towns are served by the North Jersey Coast Line.
Laurence Harbor is an unincorporated community located in Old Bridge. The waterfront neighborhood looks directly upon many points in New York City, including Staten Island‘s South Shore; the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge; Lower Manhattan (and the Empire State Building in MidtownManhattan on a clear night); and Brooklyn. The New Jersey Transit Railroad no longer has a station in Laurence Harbor. It had a Morgan station during most of the 1st half of the 20th century, located right across Cheesequake Creek, sometimes referred to locally as “The Front”, from Laurence Harbor, dividing the community into eastern and western sections. Cliffwood Beach also borders Laurence Harbor when traveling south. Morgan is named after the 1703 family that had 645 acres (2.61 km2) here and were cousins of the infamous pirate captain Henry Morgan. Morgan is located one mile to the northwest, across the Cheesequake Creek and the Morgan Bridge on New Jersey Route 35. The Morgan Draw carries the North Jersey Coast Line.
Laurence Harbor is home to Old Bridge Waterfront Park, which consists of a new boardwalk (the old boardwalk was destroyed in the 1940–1950s) that was completed in 2002. The beachfront was redone through a joint venture by Old Bridge Township, New Jersey, and Middlesex County Parks Department. It extends approximately one mile from the Old Bridge Police substation south, to the Aberdeen Township neighborhood of Cliffwood Beach, running parallel with New Jersey Route 35. This area is very popular for fishing as three jetties extend into Raritan Bay and are in excellent condition, have been consistent well-maintained. The park’s boardwalk is also popular for jogging and dog walking. At the northern parking lot of the park, there is bay beach swimming access along with a bathroom and showers.
Union Beach is a borough situated on the North Shore of Monmouth County, on Raritan Bay. Union Beach is part of the Bayshore Regional Strategic Plan, an effort by nine municipalities in northern Monmouth County to reinvigorate the area’s economy by emphasizing the traditional downtowns, dense residential neighborhoods, maritime history, and the natural beauty of the Raritan Bayshore coastline.
Keansburg was a popular early 20th century summertime destination for tourists from New York City, who would cross the Raritan Bay on steamboats to escape the city heat. Hurricane Donna wiped out much of the waterfront area in 1960, and a number of fires in the 1980s destroyed many of the town’s main attractions, including the Dance Hall Auditorium, the Keansburg Bowling Alley, and the Casino Theater.
The Keansburg Amusement Park, founded in 1904, started a massive expansion project in 1995. Upgrades were made to the park and an adjacent water park, Runaway Rapids, was constructed.
Atlantic Highlands, which overlooks where the Atlantic Ocean and Raritan Bay meet at Sandy Hook, contains Mount Mitchill, the highest point on the eastern seaboard south of Maine, rising 266 feet (81 m) above sea level.[7]
The Manhattan skyline can be seen from the borough’s ridges and its shoreline. Pleasure, fishing, and commuter boats sail from its harbor, which was built from 1938 through 1940. It is the largest on the East Coast.
Atlantic Highlands is home to the high-speed SeaStreak ferry service to New York City, which was introduced in 1986.[8] SeaStreak ferry provides high-speed commuter service for residents on the Raritan Bayshore in northern Monmouth County to Manhattan in New York City. The ferry also offers seasonal sightseeing excursions. Many Jersey Shore residents board the ferry to travel to different points across the Tri-State area and New England coastline. Many New York residents board the ferry to travel to Atlantic Highlands and Sandy Hook Beach, along with the rest of the Jersey Shore region at large.
Red Bank, overlooking the Navesink River, is a noted social and commercial destination, filled with boutiques, designer clothing stores, parks, and restaurants. The town is also considered a center of artistic activity and is home to the Monmouth County Arts Council, as well as the Count Basie Theatre, Two River Theater, and several art galleries. Various festivals held by the town, including the Red Bank Jazz & Blues Festival, draw tourists throughout the year.
Boating, sculling, sailing, and fishing are popular outdoor activities in Red Bank; in the winter, ice boats sail on the Navesink when it freezes over.[12] The Monmouth Boat Club, Marine Park, and the slips of the Molly Pitcher Inn provide access to the river and, from there, the Atlantic Ocean.[13]
The original racing track was opened by the Monmouth Park Association on July 30, 1870, in nearby Eatontown to increase summer tourism for communities along the Shore.[14][15] Monmouth Park early on earned the nickname as the “Newmarket of America” due to the excellence of its racing. However, after three years of being open financial issues caused the track to close. In 1878, the track was bought by David D. Withers, George L. Lorillard, James Gordon Bennett, Jr., and George P. Wetmore. The men spent four years renovating the grounds and grandstand and reopened Monmouth Park in 1882. From 1882 to 1890, the track increased in popularity and as a result, a new racetrack was constructed next to the original. The new racetrack opened in 1890 becoming the second Monmouth Park.[15] However, legislation proposed in 1891 and enacted in 1894 barred parimutuel betting in New Jersey, and the track closed its doors. It was not until 1946 when the New Jersey Legislature passed a bill providing for state regulation of horse racing that the current Monmouth Park opened.[15]
In 2005, Pier Village, a Victorian-inspired mixed-use community consisting of rental residences atop retail space, opened. A public grassy area called Festival Plaza is the site of regular events, including concerts, arts & crafts fairs, outdoor movies, and holiday events. Long Branch is also home to Max’s Famous Hotdogs and its rival, the original WindMill Hot Dogs, located in a windmill-shaped building since 1963.[18]
A Tillie replica on the Wonder Bar in Asbury ParkAsbury Park‘s boardwalkThe Jersey Shore in Ocean Grove, with the Asbury Park skyline in the background
Race riots on July 4, 1970, resulted in the destruction of various buildings across the city. A popular indoor amusement complex, Palace Amusements, was closed in 1988 and demolished in 2004, despite multiple attempts to save it. A pair of large murals on the building’s side known collectively as “Tillie” became an icon of the Jersey Shore and was saved.
In the 1990s, Asbury Park emerged as a prime LGBT destination, with multiple gay bars and nightclubs, as well as the Empress Hotel, the state’s first gay-oriented hotel, opening. Since the early 2000s, a burgeoning crowd of artists along with local political leaders have helped push the town through major redevelopment, which is still ongoing. Asbury Park still retains the lively music scene which made it famous. Events like the Asbury Music Awards and the Garden State Film Festival continue to draw tourists to the city.
Ocean Grove was originally developed in 1869 as a Methodist summer camp meeting site.[20] Today, it is an unincorporated community located within Neptune Township and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Ocean Grove is noted for its abundant examples of Victorian architecture. It is home to The Great Auditorium, a 6,250-seat indoor arena constructed out of wood in 1894 on bridge-like iron trusses laid on stone foundations. The Auditorium contains a pipe organ that is one of the 20 largest in the world.[21] Surrounding the Auditorium are 114 tents, which are occupied from May to September, just as they have been since the town’s founding. The tents adjoin to rear sheds containing a kitchen and bathroom and are stored in the sheds during the winter. They are in such demand that there is a waiting list of ten years for summer rentals.[20] Ocean Grove was named one of the top 15 best beaches by Fodor’s in 2014.[22]
Belmar is a popular vacation destination due to its natural and recreational resources. Its boardwalk and town offer shops, restaurants, an active arts scene, sporting events, festivals, and a variety of family-oriented activities. Belmar is also a popular party town for young adults and college students. Belmar is among the most popular surf spots on the East Coast, frequently hosting surfing events and competitions.
Spring Lake is easily recognized by its tree lined streets, stately mansions, and seasonal cottages (of which few remain). During the Gilded Age of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, prominent members of New York City and Philadelphia high society purchased a large tract of farmland with the vision of creating a resort and religious retreat area catering to the wealthy- similar in fashion to the communities of Newport, Rhode Island, and Bar Harbor, Maine.[23] Grand hotels and guest cottages were constructed to accommodate an anticipated influx well-to-do seasonal visitors. Notably, in 1900 many of the largest hotels were destroyed by fire, leaving way for wealthy families to construct houses for year round living. But to this day, few original structures remain; as it is now commonplace to raise lots and demolish structures in order to make way for the largest homes possible. Of those still in existence, the Martin Maloney Cottage and the Audenried Cottage[24][25] serve as examples of what now remains.
Manasquan has an active downtown area defined by its Main Street, lined with small businesses and original Victorian houses. It is home to a historic 540-seat theatre, named after the Native American tribe that inhabited the land before European settlement. Built in 1938 as a movie house, it converted during May 1994 to a professional theatre.[26][27] Over the course of the 20th century, much of the traditional neighborhood beach bungalows were demolished and replaced with dwellings to accommodate larger single families, helping turn Manasquan into a predominately year-round residential community, easing the focus on summer tourism.[28]
Point Pleasant Beach is situated on the Barnegat Peninsula, a long, narrow barrier peninsula that divides the Barnegat Bay from the Atlantic Ocean at the Manasquan Inlet, and the borough derives its name from this location. The town’s boardwalk is approximately one mile long, and its central third is home to Jenkinsons’ amusement park, aquarium, and arcades, as well as numerous pizza restaurants, ice cream parlors, games-of-chance, and miniature golf courses.[30] Point Pleasant is home to the first Jersey Mike’ssub shop, founded in the town in 1956.
Seaside Heights is a resort community, with a beach, an amusement-oriented boardwalk, and numerous clubs and bars making it a popular destination. During the summer, the borough attracts a crowd largely over the age of 21, drawn to a community with boardwalk entertainment and one of the few shore communities with sizable numbers of apartments. In the peak months of July and August, the town’s population explodes from around 3,000 residents to between 30,000 and 65,000 people on any given day.[31] South of the town sits Island Beach State Park, the largest reserve of an undeveloped barrier island in New Jersey and one of the largest in the United States.[32]
Casino Pier is an amusement park situated on a pier extending over the Atlantic Ocean. The pier offers many family-friendly attractions and roller coasters, as well as an arcade, games-of-chance, and a rooftop miniature golf course. Across the street, a go-kart track, a new miniature golf course, and a waterpark, Breakwater Beach, round out the attraction list. The rest of the 2-mile (3.2 km) long boardwalk offers various arcades, attractions, souvenir shops, restaurants and food stands.[33]
On October 29, 2012, substantial portions of the boardwalk were damaged and much of the borough was flooded as a result of Hurricane Sandy. Both Casino Pier and Funtown Pier suffered major damage, with sections of both piers torn apart by a powerful storm surge that caused many rides to collapse into the ocean. One such ride, Casino Pier’s Star Jet, became a symbol of the storm’s destruction as it sat upright in the Atlantic Ocean after the pier washed out below it.[34] A portion of the rebuilt boardwalk and all of Funtown Pier were destroyed in a 2013 fire.[35]
The community is also known as the setting of the hit MTV show Jersey Shore, as well as various editions of MTV True Life and MTV Summer Beach House.[36]
Long Beach Island, colloquially known as LBI, is a barrier island and summer colony approximately 18 miles (29 km) in length.[37] The primary industries include tourism, fishing, and real estate. The only access point to the island by car is via the Manahawkin Bay Bridge, locally known as “The Causeway”, which carries Route 72 over Manahawkin Bay. Long Beach Island is home to about 20,000 people on a year-round basis. However, the population swells significantly during the summer months and reaches about 100,000 people, including both part-time residents and tourists, who are often referred to as “shoobies“.[38] The island’s close-knit communities are largely affluent and contain vacation homes for wealthy individuals who reside elsewhere in New Jersey, as well as New York, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut.
The low-density northern end of the Long Beach Island, including the communities of Barnegat Light, Loveladies, Harvey Cedars, and North Beach, are home to an assortment of high-end waterfront vacation homes. The southern end contains significantly more year-round residents and businesses, particularly in the larger boroughs of Beach Haven, Long Beach, and Surf City. Long Beach Island typically attracts a family-oriented crowd during the summertime; the island has not contained a boardwalk since the 1944 hurricane, and nightlife is limited to a few bars. Tourists generally take part in recreational activities like miniature golf, parasailing, jet skiing, and relaxing on the beaches. The island has a reputation as a base for long-range deep-sea fishing and charter boats.
Attractions include the Barnegat Lighthouse, a 165 feet (50 m) tall lighthouse overlooking the Barnegat Inlet, located in a state park at the island’s northern tip. A small amusement park, Fantasy Island, serves the surrounding communities, and the original Ron Jon Surf Shop location sits at the foot of the Manahawkin Bay Bridge in Ship Bottom.
Brigantine is an island community, the northernmost in Atlantic County. The Brigantine Lighthouse, constructed to attract tourists, is a central identifying symbol of the city.[39] Brigantine is home to the Marine Mammal Stranding Center, the state’s only rescue center for stranded marine mammals and sea turtles. It has rescued more than 3,900 whales, dolphins, seals and sea turtles since it was formed.[40] Part of the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge is located on the northern end of the island. The town is named after the numerous shipwrecks in the area, many of which were likely brigantines.[41]
The boardwalk in Atlantic City, the nation’s first boardwalkSunset on the beach in Atlantic City
Atlantic City is a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. In an effort at revitalizing the city, New Jersey voters in 1976 passed a referendum, approving casino gambling for Atlantic City. Today, the city is second to Las Vegas in number of casinos, yearly gaming revenue, and number of casino hotel rooms. Casinos like the Ocean Casino Resort, Borgata, Harrah’s, Caesars, and Tropicana draw tourists from around the world.
The Atlantic City Boardwalk is the world’s oldest boardwalk, opening on June 26, 1870.[42][43] At 5+1⁄2 miles (8.9 km) long, it is also the world’s longest and busiest boardwalk.[44] The boardwalk starts at Absecon Inlet and runs along the beach for 4 miles (6 km) to the city limit. An additional 1+1⁄2 miles (2 km) of the boardwalk extend into neighboring Ventnor City. Casinos and hotels front the boardwalk, as well as stores, restaurants, games, and other attractions.
Notable landmarks include Boardwalk Hall, an arena and convention center opened in 1929, and Steel Pier, an amusement park on a 1,000 foot (300 m) long pier over the Atlantic Ocean. Home of the Miss America pageant, Atlantic City has been featured in numerous films and television series, most notably as the setting of the 1980 film Atlantic City and the 2011 HBO series Boardwalk Empire. The city also served as the inspiration for the board game Monopoly.
Ocean City is home to a boardwalk fronted by several shops and amusement areas. Known as a family-oriented seaside resort, the city has prohibited the sale of alcoholic beverages within its limits since its founding in 1879.[45] Ocean City has miles of guarded beaches, a 2.5-mile boardwalk, and a downtown shopping and dining district. Gillian’s Wonderland Pier and Playland’s Castaway Cove are two large amusement parks located along the boardwalk, with both family and thrill rides. A water park, various arcades, miniature golf courses, and a historic entertainment hall, the Ocean City Music Pier, round out the boardwalk attractions. Corson’s Inlet State Park was established by the New Jersey Legislature in 1969 to protect and preserve one of the last undeveloped tracts of land along the state’s oceanfront.
The Wildwoods is used as a collective term for the four communities that have “Wildwood” as part of the municipality name — the Borough of Wildwood Crest, City of Wildwood, Borough of West Wildwood and the City of North Wildwood — together with Diamond Beach, a portion of Lower Township situated on the island. Its most notable features are its beach and 1.8 miles (2.9 km) boardwalk, home to the Morey’s Piers amusement complex and Raging Waters and Ocean Oasis Waterparks owned by Morey’s Piers. The boardwalk features a trolley called the “Tramcar“, which runs from end to end.
The term doo-wop was coined by Cape May‘s Mid-Atlantic Center For The Arts in the early 1990s to describe the unique, space-age architectural style, which is also referred to as the Googie or populuxe style.[48] The motels are unique in appearance, with Vegas-like neon signs and fantastic architecture.[49]
The following is a list of all the towns within the state of New Jersey that have a beach either along the Raritan Bay or Atlantic Ocean, listed north to south:
Most ocean beaches in New Jersey charge admission to the beaches through the use of beach tags. Ocean beaches in New Jersey that do not use beach tags include Atlantic City, Strathmere (Upper Township), North Wildwood, Wildwood, and Wildwood Crest.[51]
The Jersey shore is expected to have increasing problems with the water supply in part due to saltwater intrusion, and also changes in weather patterns.[52] Communities on the eastern shore are also expected to see significant change in the commercial fisheries along the coast, hurting communities dependent on fishing.[53]
The Jersey Shore is particularly vulnerable to sea level rise accelerated by climate change, and will be experiencing more sea level rise than the global average.[54] This is in large part because of the slow down of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation which will allow sea level rise 2 feet greater than average.[54] The region already experiences frequent flooding during king tides and storm surge, because most infrastructure was built based on 20th century standards.[54] Several academic studies have explore various responses to the sea level rise including managed retreat, improved coastal management practices to mitigate risk, and hard structures.[55][56]
The entirety of the Jersey Shore region was significantly damaged by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012. The devastating effect of the storm surge on property adjacent to the beach resulted in substantial cost to the reinsurance industry which has since advocated avoidance of rebuilding closely packed middle-class residences or flimsy commercial structures adjacent to the beach. The hurricane reached up to 74 mph. Hurricane Sandy’s pure kinetic energy for storm surge and wave destruction potential reached a 5.8 out of 6 on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s scale. Storm surges reached 14 ft above average low tide. The Barrier Islands were especially damaged, leaving dozens of homes completely washed away. Many iconic places from “The Shore” were also damaged due to Hurricane Sandy, including the Belmar boardwalk, Casino Pier, and Funtown Pier.
Unlike areas in the interior of the state, which has many big box stores and malls, small businesses are a significant portion of the economy of barrier island Jersey Shore towns. This is because small businesses can more easily adapt to the seasonal nature of business in shore towns. Stores that are located at the shore are all unique ranging from psychics and accessories at Ocean City to home-made chocolates in Long Beach Island. In addition, many shore towns deliberately stymie the entry of big box stores because they want to reduce traffic.
Every town along the Jersey Shore has properties owned by people who do not live in New Jersey. State resident ownership has dropped by 30% since 1989. People from out of state own about 37% of the properties in shore towns. In 10 towns, a majority of the property is owned by out of state residents. Summer tourism swells the population of towns along the shore. Some towns have fewer than 5,000 year-round residents, then explode to more than 30,000 residents during the summer. Monmouth County has the highest percentage of New Jersey resident ownership, at 88%, followed by Ocean County at 80%, 57% in Atlantic County, and only 27% in Cape May County.[57]Avalon has the lowest percentage of state resident ownership at 27.5%, while Monmouth Beach has the highest at 92.7%.
Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land area. The island extends from New York Harbor 118 miles (190 km) eastward into the ocean with a maximum north–south width of 23 miles (37 km).[2][3] With a land area of 1,401 square miles (3,630 km2), it is the largest island in the contiguous United States.[4]
With a population of 8,063,232 residents as of the 2020 U.S. census, Long Island constitutes 40% of the state’s population.[5][6][7][8][9] Long Island is the most populous island in any U.S. state or territory, the third-most populous island in the Americas after Hispaniola and Cuba, and the 18th-most populous island in the world ahead of Ireland, Jamaica, and Hokkaidō. Its population density is 5,859.5 inhabitants per square mile (2,262.4/km2). Long Island is culturally and ethnically diverse, featuring some of the wealthiest and most expensive neighborhoods in the world near the shorelines, as well as a variety of working-class areas in all four counties.
As the last Ice Age waned with Wisconsin glaciation, early Paleo-Indians ventured into the evolving landscapes of present-day Long Island, marking a significant environmental shifts and laying the groundwork for the region’s rich ecosystems.[14] These nomadic hunter-gatherers, equipped with stone tools, navigated the newly emerging landscapes, hunting large game and gathering from the abundant natural resources.[15]
Following the Paleo-Indian period, the Archaic Period marked a broadening of subsistence strategies. The inhabitants of Long Island diversified their diet, exploiting the rich marine and terrestrial environments.[14] The main source of protein came from the sea, consisting of fish and shellfish, oysters being of particular importance.[16] Deer and other wild game and various plant foods also became part of their regular diet.[17] The archaeological record also reveals a shift towards a more settled lifestyle, with small bands forming seasonal settlements.[18]
The indigenous peoples in the Early and Middle Woodland period began developing horticulture as well as more efficient strategies for hunting and gathering. They established year-round settlements. Pottery emerged as a widespread technological innovation during this era, serving not only practical storage and cooking purposes but also functioning as a medium for cultural expression. The stylistic variations in pottery across different sites on Long Island suggest a rich diversity of cultural identities and the exchange of ideas among various groups.[19] Additionally, this period was marked by participation in trade networks with other Northeastern Indigenous communities.[20]
During the Late Woodland Period, there was a noticeable intensification of agriculture, with maize becoming a staple crop alongside beans and squash. This agricultural advancement supported larger populations and led to the establishment of more permanent villages characterized by substantial dwellings, mostly wigwams and longhouses.[16] The increased reliance on farming did not eliminate hunting and gathering, which continued to play a crucial role in the subsistence economy.[19]
The Long Island natives lived in villages of differing sizes and their governing style, because of a lack of evidence, can only be guessed. However, anthropological models suggest that the leaders did not have overarching authority over the rest of the village. Rather, the leaders often sought advice from the elders.[17]
The early settlers of Long Island were likely tied by kinship and did not identify themselves as distinct tribes. These tribes were designated by the Europeans as a method of identifying borders. However, there seems to be two, overlapping, but different cultures. Western Long Island natives probably spoke the Delaware-Munsee dialect. The eastern group’s language is less well-founded, but it is most likely related to the southern New England Algonquian dialect. The kinship system likely kept Long Island natives together with clans in present-day New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.[21]
Giovanni da Verrazzano was the first European to record an encounter with the Lenape people, after entering what is now New York Bay in 1524, however it is unclear whether he encountered Native Americans from Long Island.
Excerpt from the 1685 Novi Belgii Novæque Angliæ map by Nicolaes Visscher II with “Lange Eylandt alias Matouwacs” in red
In 1609, the English navigator Henry Hudson explored the harbor and purportedly landed at present-day Coney Island. Dutch explorer Adriaen Block followed in 1615 and is credited as the first European to determine that both Manhattan and Long Island are islands.
The first recorded encounters between the Algonquian peoples of Long Island and Europeans occurred with the arrival of explorers in the early 17th century, first contacted by Henry Hudson and his crew. These interactions were initially characterized by curiosity and tentative exchanges, but conflicts later emerged between them. Despite this, mutually beneficial trade ensued, with the Algonquian trading fur for clothing, metal, guns, and alcohol.[17]
The Dutch, recognizing the value of New England’s fur market, forged long-term alliances with the Algonquians in 1613, ushering in permanent settlements. By 1621, the Dutch West India Company established itself in the Northeast. The Dutch West India Company established a foothold in the Northeast, initiating a lucrative trade in wampum—beads of significant cultural and economic importance to Native tribes across the Northeast. The wampum was primarily made by Long Island Native Americans. The Dutch would thus engage in a triangular trade: purchasing large quantities of wampum from Long Island, exchanging wampum for fur with inland tribes, and shipping the fur back to Europe.[22] This triangular trade created peace amongst the Europeans and the Native Americans for decades.[17]
In 1636, Charles I of England, a Stuart, rewarded Scottish courtier, diplomat, and colonial governor William Alexander‘s service to the Crown by creating him Lord Alexander of Tullibody and Viscount of Stirling. On April 22 of that year Charles told the Plymouth Colony, which had laid claim to Long Island but had not settled it, to cede it to Alexander. When his agent James Farret arrived in New Amsterdam in 1637 to present his claim of English sovereignty, he was arrested and imprisoned in Holland, but later escaped from prison.
The Pequot War, a struggle over between the Pequot tribe of Connecticut, who exerted control over eastern Long Island, and the English New England Colonies, reshaped alliances and power dynamics in the region. The defeat of the Pequots left a void in eastern Long Island’s political landscape, who were historically under the influence of the Connecticut Pequots for trade and protection. Indigenous leaders such as Uncas and Ninigret, alongside the New England Colonies, vied to fill this vacuum, with the colonists eventually prevailing over their indigenous rivals. In 1639, Lion Gardiner secured the first purchase of eastern Long Island land, an islet off of present-day East Hampton.[14]
The period between 1636 and 1648 marked a time of land acquisition in Long Island by Dutch and English colonists. The Dutch occupied a small portion of western Long Island while the English settled on the eastern side, buying land from any sachems who were willing to sell to them. The perspectives on these land purchases likely varied significantly between Native Americans and Europeans. Europeans viewed land transactions as opportunities for exclusive ownership and permanent settlement, while the Algonquian peoples viewed the transaction as temporary and communal.[23] Additionally, the Native Americans governance style of weak leadership and undefined hunting grounds, did not align with the European’s need for strict boundaries. This confusion resulted in conflict and boundary disputes for many years after.
In 1640, English colonists attempted to settle Cow Bay in what is present-day Port Washington. After an alert by Native leader Penhawitz, the colonists were arrested by the Dutch but released after saying they were mistaken about the title.[24]
As European settlers proliferated on Long Island, the ecosystem underwent significant transformation, and the dynamics between Native Americans and Europeans shifted. The Europeans cleared vast areas of traditional hunting grounds and introduced livestock that damaged Native crops.[17] Europeans also began to encroach on Native land, and this growing proximity heightened tensions. This culminated in Kieft’s War, initiated by a devastating attack that killed 80 Native Americans.[26]
Despite shifting claims to title and absentee land sales, European settlers continued to purchase land directly from indigenous people. In 1655, they split the acquired land amongst themselves and continued to search the island for more land for settlement. On June 10, 1664, other parts of indigenous land were bought, including present-day Brookhaven, Bellport, and South Haven, in exchange for four coats and 6 pounds 10 shillings – a value that, accounting for monetary inflation through 2017, is currently worth approximately $840.[27]
During King Philip’s War in 1675, the governor of New York, Edmund Andros, ordered that all canoes east of Hell Gate be confiscated. This was done to prevent local indigenous people from helping their Native allies on the mainland, who were attacking New England settlers there.[28] Notable sachems, such as Tackapousha of the Massapequa, saw their influence wane post-King Philip’s War in 1675. In the face of escalating tensions between French and English settlers, these Indigenous figures endeavored to mediate and protect their communities. However efforts to maintain land rights were undermined by disease, deceit, infringements of land patents, and cultural misunderstandings.[17]
After the Dutch began to colonize Manhattan, many indigenous people moved to Pennsylvania and Delaware. Many of those who stayed behind died from smallpox, which spread to North America via European colonists and resulted in large scale deaths due to lack of antibodies and natural resistance which Eurasian peoples had gained with their exposure to the disease.[29]
Native American land deeds recorded by the Dutch from 1636 state that the Indians referred to Long Island as Sewanhaka. Sewanhacky and Sewanhacking were other spellings in the transliteration of the Lenape.[30]Sewan was one of the terms for wampum, commemorative stringed shell beads, for a while also used as currency by colonists in trades with the Lenape, and is also translated as “loose” or “scattered”, which may refer either to the wampum or to Long Island.[30] The name “‘t Lange Eylandt alias Matouwacs” appears in Dutch maps from the 1650s,[31][32] with ‘t Lange Eylandt translating it to “Long Island” from Old Dutch. The English referred to Long Island as “Nassau Island”,[33] after the House of Nassau of the Dutch Prince William of Nassau, Prince of Orange (who later also ruled as King William III of England). It is unclear when the name “Nassau Island” was discontinued. Another indigenous name from colonial time, Paumanok, comes from the Native American name for Long Island and means “the island that pays tribute.”[34]
The very first European settlements on Long Island were by settlers from England and its colonies in present-day New England. Lion Gardiner settled nearby Gardiners Island. The first settlement on the geographic Long Island itself was on October 21, 1640, when Southold was established by the Rev. John Youngs and settlers from New Haven, Connecticut. Peter Hallock, one of the settlers, drew the long straw and was granted the honor to step ashore first. He is considered the first New World settler on Long Island. Southampton was settled in the same year. Hempstead followed in 1644, East Hampton in 1648, Huntington in 1653, Brookhaven in 1655, and Smithtown in 1665.
While the eastern region of Long Island was first settled by the English, the western portion of Long Island was settled by the Dutch; until 1664, the jurisdiction of Long Island was split between the Dutch and English, roughly at the present border between Nassau County and Suffolk County. The Dutch founded six towns in present-day Brooklyn beginning in 1645. These included: Brooklyn, Gravesend, Flatlands, Flatbush, New Utrecht, and Bushwick. The Dutch had granted an English settlement in Hempstead, New York (now in Nassau County) in 1644, but after a boundary dispute, they drove out English settlers from the Oyster Bay area. However, in 1664, the English returned to take over the Dutch colony of New Netherland, including Long Island.
The 1664 land patent granted to the Duke of York included all islands in Long Island Sound. The Duke of York held a grudge against Connecticut, as New Haven had hidden three of the judges (John Dixwell, Edward Whalley and William Goffe[35]) who sentenced the Duke’s father, King Charles I, to death in 1649. Settlers throughout Suffolk County pressed to stay part of Connecticut, but Governor Sir Edmund Andros threatened to eliminate the settlers’ rights to land if they did not yield, which they did by 1676.[36]
All of Long Island along with islands between Long Island and Connecticut became part of the Province of New York within the Shire of York. Present-day Suffolk County was designated as the East Riding (of Yorkshire), present-day Brooklyn was part of the West Riding, and present-day Queens and Nassau were part of the larger North Riding. In 1683, Yorkshire was dissolved and the three original counties on Long Island were established: Kings, Queens, and Suffolk.
Following the European colonization of the Americas, including Long Island, the Algonquian peoples found themselves increasingly marginalized, their ancient hunting grounds cleared for agriculture, and their economic systems integrated into the European market, particularly through their labor and the dwindling fur and wampum trades. By the 18th century, most native lands had been seized, leaving only small parcels, and many Indigenous people were relegated to roles as domestics, laborers, guides, and seamen.[17]
William Floyd was born on Long Island on December 17, 1734. In 1654, his family emigrated to North America. By the time of Floyd’s birth, the family was established and wealthy. He was a member of the Suffolk County Militia in the beginning of the American Revolution, and rose to the rank of Major General. In 1774, he was chosen as a representative from New York to the First Continental Congress. After the battle of Long Island, his estate was confiscated by the British army and was used as a cavalry base. In 1789, Floyd was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he served until 1791. Francis Lewis from Brookhaven on Long Island, another signer of the Declaration of Independence, had his home destroyed and his wife Elizabeth arrested by the British after the battle of Long Island. George Washington managed her release by having the wives of two wealthy Loyalists from Philadelphia arrested, and then exchanging the two for Mrs. Lewis.
Early in the American Revolutionary War, the island was captured by the British from American troops under George Washington in the battle of Long Island, a major battle after which Washington narrowly evacuated his troops from Brooklyn Heights under a dense fog. After the British victory on Long Island, many Patriots withdrew, leaving mostly Loyalists behind. The island was a British stronghold until the end of the war in 1783.[37]
General Washington based his intelligence activities on Long Island, due to the western part of the island’s proximity to the British military headquarters in New York City. The Culper Ring included agents operating between Setauket and Manhattan. This ring alerted Washington to valuable British secrets, including the treason of Benedict Arnold and a plan to use counterfeiting to induce economic sabotage.[citation needed]
Long Island’s colonists supported both Loyalist and Patriot causes, with many prominent families divided among both sides. During the occupation, British forces utilized a number of civilian structures for defense and were also at times quartered in local homes. A number of structures from this era remain. Among these are Raynham Hall, the Oyster Bay home of patriot spy Robert Townsend, and the Caroline Church in Setauket, which contains bullet holes from a skirmish known as the Battle of Setauket. Also in existence is a reconstruction of Brooklyn’s Old Stone House, on the site of the Maryland 400‘s celebrated last stand during the Battle of Long Island.[38]
In the 19th century, Long Island was still mainly rural and devoted to agriculture. The predecessor to the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) began service in 1836 from the South Ferry in Brooklyn, through the remainder of Brooklyn, to Jamaica in Queens. The line was completed to the east end of Long Island in 1844, as part of a plan for transportation to Boston. Competing railroads, soon absorbed by the LIRR, were built along the south shore to accommodate travelers from those more populated areas. For the century from 1830 until 1930, total population roughly doubled every twenty years, with more dense development in areas near Manhattan. Several cities were incorporated, such as the “City of Brooklyn” in Kings County, and Long Island City in Queens.[39][40]
Until completion of the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883, the only means of travel between Long Island and the rest of the United States was by boat or ship. As other bridges and tunnels were constructed, areas of the island began to be developed as residential suburbs, first around the railroads that offered commuting into the city. On January 1, 1898, Kings County and portions of Queens County were consolidated into the City of Greater New York, abolishing all cities and towns within them. The easternmost 280 square miles (730 km2) of Queens County, which were not part of the consolidation plan,[41][42][43][44][45][46] separated from Queens in 1899 to form Nassau County.
At the close of the 19th century, wealthy industrialists who made vast fortunes during the Gilded Age began to construct large “baronial” country estates in Nassau County communities along the North Shore of Long Island, favoring the many properties with water views. Proximity to Manhattan attracted such men as J. P. Morgan, William K. Vanderbilt, and Charles Pratt, whose estates led to this area being nicknamed the Gold Coast. This period and the area was immortalized in fiction, such as F. Scott Fitzgerald‘s The Great Gatsby, which has also been adapted in films.
The gradual decline in Indigenous authority reached a critical point when it led to the formal obliteration of acknowledgement for many tribes. A poignant example of this phenomenon occurred in 1910, when a legal decree by the Judiciary of New York pronounced the Montaukett “tribe” extinct, ignoring the presence and testimonies of its members in court. Such decrees were used to facilitate the encroachment on Native American lands with greater ease, granting legal legitimacy to the acts of settler colonialism. In the absence of legally recognized Indigenous territories, settlers could assert ownership over Native lands without engaging in negotiations or offering compensation. This act represented the final stage in the thorough domination and displacement of Native American communities on Long Island.[47]
Charles Lindbergh lifted off from Roosevelt Field with his Spirit of St. Louis for his historic 1927 solo flight to Europe, one of the events that helped to establish Long Island as an early center of aviation during the 20th century. Other famous aviators such as Wiley Post originated notable flights from Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, which became the first major airport serving New York City before it was superseded by the opening of La Guardia Airport in 1939. Long Island was also the site of Mitchel Air Force Base and was a major center of military aircraft production by companies such as Grumman and Fairchild Aircraft during World War II and for some decades afterward. Aircraft production on Long Island extended all the way into the Space Age. Grumman was one of the major contractors that helped to build the early lunar flight and Space Shuttle vehicles. Although the aircraft companies eventually ended their Long Island operations and the early airports were all later closed. Roosevelt Field, for instance, became the site of a major shopping mall, the Cradle of Aviation Museum on the site of the former Mitchel Field documents the Island’s key role in the history of aviation.
From the 1920s to the 1940s, Long Island began the transformation from backwoods and farms as developers created numerous suburbs. Numerous branches of the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) already enabled commuting from the suburbs to Manhattan. Robert Moses engineered various automobile parkway projects to span the island, and developed beaches and state parks for the enjoyment of residents and visitors from the city. Gradually, development also followed these parkways, with various communities springing up along the more traveled routes.
After World War II, suburban development increased with incentives under the G.I. Bill, and Long Island’s population skyrocketed, mostly in Nassau County and western Suffolk County. Second and third-generation children of immigrants moved out to eastern Long Island to settle in new housing developments built during the post-war boom. Levittown became noted as a suburb, where housing construction was simplified to be produced on a large scale. These provided opportunities for white World War II military veterans returning home to buy houses and start a family. In his 1966 book, My Private America (Moja prywatna Ameryka), Kazimierz Wierzyński, a Polish poet who could not go back to Poland after World War II, describes Polish farmers living there, as “walking novels”.[48]
At the beginning of the 21st century, a number of Long Island communities had converted their assets from industrial uses to post-industrial roles. Brooklyn reversed decades of population decline and factory closings to resurface as a globally renowned cultural and intellectual hotbed. Gentrification has impacted much of Brooklyn and a portion of Queens, relocating a sizeable swath of New York City’s population. On eastern Long Island, Port Jefferson, Patchogue, and Riverhead evolved from inactive shipbuilding and mill towns into tourist-centric commercial centers with cultural attractions.
The westernmost end of Long Island contains the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn (Kings County) and Queens (Queens County). The central and eastern portions contain the suburbanNassau and Suffolk counties. However, colloquial usage of the term “Long Island” usually refers only to Nassau and Suffolk counties. For example, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York has a district named “Long Island (Nassau-Suffolk Metro Division).”[49] At least as late as 1911, locations in Queens were still commonly referred to as being on Long Island.[50] Some institutions in the New York City section of the island use the island’s names, like Long Island University and Long Island Jewish Medical Center.
There are few tall buildings on Long Island. Nassau County is more densely developed than Suffolk County. While affluent overall, Nassau County has pockets of more pronounced wealth with estates covering greater acreage within the Gold Coast of the North Shore and the Five Towns area on the South Shore. South Shore communities are built along protected wetlands of the island and contain white sandy beaches of Outer Barrier Islands fronting on the Atlantic Ocean. Dutch and English settlers from the time before the American Revolutionary War, as well as communities of Native Americans, populated the island. The 19th century saw the infusion of the wealthiest Americans in the so-called Gold Coast of the North Shore, where wealthy Americans and Europeans in the Gilded Age built lavish country homes.
East of Riverhead in Suffolk County, Long Island splits into two peninsulas (colloquially referred to as “Forks”), which are separated by the Peconic Bay. The easternmost point of the North Fork is Orient Point, and the easternmost point of the South Fork (and all of Long Island) is Montauk Point. Long Island’s East End remains semi-rural, as in Greenport on the North Fork and some of the periphery of the area prominently known as The Hamptons, although summer tourism swells the population in those areas. The North Fork has developed a burgeoning wine region.[56] In addition, the South Fork is known for beach communities, including the Hamptons, and for the Montauk Point Lighthouse at the eastern tip of the island. The Pine Barrens is a preserved pine forest encompassing much of eastern Suffolk County.
The land to the south of this moraine to the South Shore is the outwash plain of the last glacier. One part of the outwash plain was known as the Hempstead Plains, and this land contained one of the few natural prairies to exist east of the Appalachian Mountains.[58] The glaciers melted and receded to the north, resulting in the difference between the topography of the North Shore beaches and the South Shore beaches. The North Shore beaches are rocky from the remaining glacial debris, while the South Shore’s are crisp, clear, outwash sand. Jayne’s Hill, at 401 feet (122 m), within Suffolk County near its border with Nassau County, is the highest hill along either moraine; another well-known summit is Bald Hill in Brookhaven Town, not far from its geographical center at Middle Island. The glaciers also formed Lake Ronkonkoma in Suffolk County and Lake Success in Nassau County, each a deep kettle lake.
Under the Köppen climate classification, Long Island lies in a transition zone between a humid subtropical climate (Cfa) and a hot-summer humid continental climate (Dfa).[60] The climate features hot, usually humid summers with occasional thunderstorms, mild spring and fall weather, and cool winters with a mix of snow and rain and stormier conditions. Spring can be cool due to the relatively cooler temperatures of the Atlantic Ocean and occasional blocking. Thunderstorms rarely form directly over Long Island, but can form over inland areas and then move eastward. Some storms may weaken as they approach Long Island due to the moderating effects of the Atlantic Ocean. The ocean also brings afternoon sea breezes to the immediate South Shore areas (within 1 mile (1.6 km)) that temper the heat in the warmer months. The temperatures south of Sunrise Highway (NY Route 27) tend to be significantly cooler than the rest of Long Island in the spring and summer months because of the relatively cooler temperatures of the Atlantic Ocean. Long Island has a moderately sunny climate, averaging 2,400 to 2,800 hours of sunshine annually.[61]
Due to its coastal location, Long Island winter temperatures are milder than most of the state. The coldest month is January, when average temperatures range from 25 to 45 °F (−4 to 7 °C), and the warmest month is July, when average temperatures range from 74 to 85 °F (23 to 29 °C).[62] Temperatures seldom fall below 0 °F (−18 °C) or rise above 100 °F (38 °C). Coldest temp ever recorded on Long Island was −23 °F (−31 °C) on January 22, 1961. Long Island temperatures vary from west to east, with the western part (Nassau County, Queens, and Brooklyn) generally 2 to 3 degrees F (1 to 2 degrees C) warmer than the east (Suffolk County). This is due to several factors: the western part is closer to the mainland and more densely developed, causing the “urban heat island” effect, and Long Island’s land mass veers northward as one travels east. Also, daytime high temperatures on the eastern part of Long Island are cooler on most occasions, due to the moderating effect of the Atlantic Ocean and Long Island Sound. On dry nights with no clouds or wind, the Central Part of Suffolk County and Pine Barrens forest of eastern Suffolk County can be almost 5 to 10 F (3 to 5 C) cooler than the rest of the island, due to radiational cooling. Average dew points, a measure of atmospheric moisture, typically lie in the 65–75 °F (18–24 °C) range during July and August.
Precipitation is distributed uniformly throughout the year, with approximately 3–4 inches (76–102 mm) on average during each month. Average yearly snowfall totals range from approximately 20 to 35 inches (51 to 89 cm), with the north shore and western parts averaging more than the immediate south shore (South of Sunrise Hwy) and the east end. In any given winter, however, some parts of the island can see up to 50 inches (130 cm) of snow or more. There are also milder winters, in which much of the island see less than 10 inches (25 cm) of snow.
On August 13, 2014, flash flooding occurred in western-central Suffolk County after a record-setting rainfall deposited more than three months’ worth of precipitation on the area within a few hours.[63]
Long Island is somewhat vulnerable to tropical cyclones.[64] While it lies north of where most tropical cyclones turn eastward and out to sea (most landfalls on the East Coast of the U.S. occur from North Carolina southward), several tropical cyclones have struck Long Island, including a devastating Category 3, the 1938 New England hurricane (also known as the “Long Island Express”), and another Category 3, Hurricane Carol in 1954. Other 20th-century storms that made landfall on Long Island at hurricane intensity include the 1944 Great Atlantic hurricane, Hurricane Donna in 1960, Hurricane Belle in 1976, and Hurricane Gloria in 1985. Also, the eyewall of Hurricane Bob in 1991 brushed the eastern tip. In August 2011, portions of Long Island were evacuated in preparation for Hurricane Irene, a Category 1 hurricane which weakened to a tropical storm before it reached Long Island.[65]
On October 29, 2012, Hurricane Sandy caused extensive damage to low-lying coastal areas of Nassau and Suffolk counties, Brooklyn, and Queens, destroying or severely damaging thousands of area homes and other structures by ocean and bay storm surges. Hundreds of thousands of residents were left without electric power for periods of time ranging up to several weeks while the damage was being repaired. The slow-moving “Superstorm Sandy” (so-nicknamed because it merged with a nor’easter before it made landfall) caused 90% of Long Island households to lose power and an estimated $18 billion in damages in Nassau and Suffolk counties alone.[66][67] The storm also had a devastating impact on coastal communities in the Brooklyn and Queens portions of the island, including Coney Island in Brooklyn and the Rockaway Peninsula in Queens, although estimates of monetary damages there are usually calculated as part of the overall losses suffered in New York City as a whole. When allowance is made for inflation, the extent of Sandy’s damages is second only to that of those caused by the 1938 Long Island Express. Although a lower central pressure was recorded in Sandy, the National Hurricane Center estimates that the 1938 hurricane had a lower pressure at landfall.[68][69][full citation needed] Hurricane Sandy and its profound impacts have prompted the discussion of constructing seawalls and other coastal barriers around the shorelines of Long Island and New York City to minimize the risk of destructive consequences from another such event in the future.[70][71]
A detailed map of Long IslandA mansion on Long Island’s wealthy North Shore, which along with The Hamptons and Brooklyn‘s western waterfront (facing Manhattan) provides Long Island with some of world’s most expensive residential real estate
Long Island is a region affected by environmental degradation resulting from urban and suburban expansion beginning at the start of the 20th century. With the Long Island Sound to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the south and east, Long Island is home to a diverse range of habitats including salt marshes, coastal grasslands, beaches, rocky intertidal zones, tidal flats, pine barrens, estuaries, deciduous forests and many more.[78] Each of these habitats faces unique challenges in terms of environmental degradation but a few common issues can be found in each of them.
One of the most common forms of environmental degradation is eutrophication of lakes and ponds due nutrient pollution. Nearly all of the bodies of water on Long Island have been affected by nutrient pollution in the form of nitrogen and phosphorus.[79] Fertilizer containing high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus is washed into nearby surface water, accelerating the process of eutrophication. Common signs of eutrophication include murky green water and foul odor.[80] Nutrient pollution is also responsible for harmful algal blooms which can be toxic to aquatic organisms, birds and mammals, including humans.
Chemical pollution is common on Long Island with it being home to 38 Superfund sites both closed and active. The four counties of Long Island have had chemical pollution, but Nassau County has the most out of the group with 18 superfund sites.[81] Most famously from 1942 to 1996 Northrop Grumman and the United States Navy owned 600 acres where they manufactured military aircraft. Disposal practices of both parties resulted in a plume of VOCs or volatile organic compounds that contaminated groundwater in an area extending 4.3 miles north and south and 2.1 miles east and west. Restoration efforts have been on going since 2019 but concern over water quality still remains.[82] Chemical pollution on Long Island often follows a similar pattern of negligence with hazardous chemicals that leak into groundwater and soil. Long Island drinking water is sourced from a large aquifer which is at risk of contamination if chemical pollution continues.
Long Island is one of the most developed areas in the United States with a majority of the high intensity development located closer to New York City and lower intensity development moving east across the island. High intensity development makes up 10% of the land cover on Long Island. Medium intensity development makes up 17%, and low intensity development makes up 17%. Developed open spaces account for 19% making the total percent of developed land around 63%.[83] Most of the undeveloped land is found in Suffolk County which is made up of 46% undeveloped land.[83] This level of development means most of the original habitats on Long Island have been destroyed or segmented by housing developments or roads. Tidal wetlands are the victims of the most habitat destruction due development of coastal land. New York has lost almost half of its tidal wetlands along the Long Island Sound.[84] These tidal wetlands act as a natural barrier from flooding. As they are destroyed and developed the chances of flooding increase.
Climate change will affect Long Islanders in a number of ways in the future. It is estimated that at current rates by the year 2100 water levels will rise about four feet causing the relocation and destruction of neighborhoods along the coast of the island.[85] As well as rising water levels, Long Islanders will have to deal with the effects of ever stronger hurricane seasons, and more catastrophic storms like Hurricane Sandy in 2012.[85] Rising temperatures will also exacerbate the algal bloom problems, as algae tends to thrive in warmer waters.[85] Restoration of coast lines and marsh habitats may provided some protection against flooding from large storms, but Long Island is largely unprepared for the increasing intensity of storms in the years to come.
Long Island is the most populous island and one of the most densely populated regions in the United States. At the 2020 U.S. census, the total population of all four counties of Long Island was 8,063,232, comprising 40% of the population of the State of New York. As of 2020, the proportion of New York City residents (total 8,804,190) living on Long Island had risen to 58.4%, given the 5,141,538 residents living in Brooklyn and Queens.[86] Furthermore, the proportion of New York State’s population residing on Long Island has also been increasing, with Long Island’s census-estimated population increasing 6.5% since 2010, to 8,063,232 in 2020, representing 40% of New York State’s census 2020-enumerated population of 20,215,751[87] and with a population density of 5,859.5 inhabitants per square mile (2,262.4/km2) on Long Island; the island is more populous than 37 of the 50 U.S. states.[citation needed]
At the 2020 census, the combined population of Nassau and Suffolk counties was 2,921,694 people, Suffolk County’s share being 1,525,920 and Nassau County’s 1,395,774. Nassau County had a larger population for decades, but Suffolk County surpassed it in the 1990 census as growth and development continued to spread eastward. As Suffolk County has more than three times the land area of Nassau County, the latter still has a much higher population density, given its proximity to New York City. According to the U.S. Census Bureau‘s 2008 American Community Survey, Nassau and Suffolk counties had the 10th and 26th highest median household incomes in the nation, respectively.[88] Long Island’s population is in decline, having lost over 111,000 residents to other states between 2017 and 2022. An exception was in 2020 during the pandemic, when Long Island saw a small net increase as city residents left for more space. Those who leave Long Island are generally younger than the median resident and less likely to have a four-year degree, children, or high income. Florida, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina are the biggest recipients of ex-Long Islanders. The Island has seen a net increase from New Yorkers leaving other parts of the state, and a net decrease of Long Islanders leaving for other areas in New York.[89]
Whites are the largest racial group in all four counties, and are in the majority in Nassau and Suffolk counties.[90] In 2002, The New York Times cited a study by the non-profit group ERASE Racism, which determined that Nassau and Suffolk counties constitute the most racially segregated suburbs in the United States.[91]
In contrast, Queens is the most ethnically diverse county in the United States and the most diverse urban area in the world.[92][93]
According to a 2000 report on religion, which asked congregations to respond, Catholics are the largest religious group on Long Island, with non-affiliated in second place. Catholics make up 52% of the population of Nassau and Suffolk, versus 22% for the country as a whole, with Jews at 16% and 7%, respectively, versus 1.7% nationwide.[94] Only a small percentage of Protestants responded, 7% and 8% respectively, for Nassau and Suffolk counties. This is in contrast with 23% for the entire country on the same survey, and 50% on self-identification surveys.[94]
A growing population of nearly half a million Chinese Americans now live on Long Island.[95] Rapidly expanding Chinatowns have developed in Brooklyn and Queens, with Chinese immigrants also moving into Nassau County,[96][97][98] as did earlier European immigrants, such as the Irish and Italians. The busy intersection of Main Street, Kissena Boulevard, and 41st Avenue defines the center of Downtown Flushing and the Flushing Chinatown, known as the “Chinese Times Square” or the “Chinese Manhattan“.[99][100] The segment of Main Street between Kissena Boulevard and Roosevelt Avenue, punctuated by the Long Island Rail Roadtrestle overpass, represents the cultural heart of the Flushing Chinatown. Housing over 30,000 individuals born in China alone, the largest by this metric outside Asia, Flushing has become home to the largest and one of the fastest-growing Chinatowns in the world as the heart of over 250,000 ethnic Chinese in Queens, representing the largest Chinese population of any U.S. municipality other than New York City in total.[101] Conversely, the Flushing Chinatown has also become the epicenter of organized prostitution in the United States, importing women from China, Korea, Thailand, and Eastern Europe to sustain the underground North American sex trade.[102]Flushing is undergoing rapid gentrification with investment by Chinese transnational entities.[103]
A 2010 article in The New York Times stated that the expansion of the immigrant workforce on Long Island has not displaced any jobs from other Long Island residents. Half of the immigrants on Long Island hold white-collar positions.[112]
The counties of Nassau and Suffolk have been long renowned for their affluence. Long Island is home to some of the wealthiest communities in the United States, including The Hamptons, on the East End of the South Shore of Suffolk County; the Gold Coast, in the vicinity of the island’s North Shore, along Long Island Sound; and increasingly, the western shoreline of Brooklyn, facing Manhattan. In 2016, according to Business Insider, the 11962 zip code encompassing Sagaponack, within Southampton, was listed as the most expensive in the U.S., with a median home sale price of $8.5 million.[113]
Long Island is home to the East Coast‘s largest industrial park, the Hauppauge Industrial Park, hosting over 1,300 companies which employ more than 71,000 individuals. Companies in the park and abroad are represented by the Hauppauge Industrial Association. As many as 20% of Long Islanders commute to jobs in Manhattan. The island’s eastern end is still partly agricultural. Development of vineyards on the North Fork has spawned a major viticultural industry, replacing potato fields. Pumpkin farms have been added to traditional truck farming. Farms allow fresh fruit picking by Long Islanders for much of the year. Fishing continues to be an important industry, especially at Huntington, Northport, Montauk, and other coastal communities of the East End and South Shore.
From about 1930 to about 1990, Long Island was considered one of the aerospace manufacturing centers of the United States, with companies such as Grumman, Republic, Fairchild, and Curtiss having their headquarters and factories on Long Island. These operations have largely been phased out or significantly diminished.
A commemorative half-dollar coin issued in 1936 for Long Island’s 300th anniversary
Nassau County and Suffolk County each have their own governments, with a County Executive leading each. Each has a county legislature and countywide-elected officials, including district attorney, county clerk, and county comptroller. The towns in both counties have their own governments as well, with town supervisors and a town council. Nassau County is divided into three towns and two small incorporated cities (Glen Cove and Long Beach). Suffolk County is divided into ten towns.
Brooklyn and Queens, on the other hand, do not have official county governments and are represented only by the Kings County and Queens County District Attorneys, respectively, who work for the State of New York. As boroughs of New York City, both have borough presidents, which have been largely ceremonial offices since the shutdown of the New York City Board of Estimate. The respective Borough Presidents are responsible for appointing individuals to the Brooklyn Community Boards and Queens Community Boards, each of which serves an advisory function on local issues. Brooklyn’s sixteen members and Queens’ fourteen members represent the first and second largest borough contingents of the New York City Council.[114]
The secession of Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island from New York State was proposed as early as 1896, but talk was revived towards the latter part of the twentieth century.[116] On March 28, 2008, Suffolk County Comptroller Joseph Sawicki proposed a plan that would make Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island the 51st state of the United States of America.[117] Sawicki claimed all of Nassau and Suffolk taxpayers’ money would remain locally, rather than the funds being dispersed all over the entire state of New York, with these counties sending to Albany over three billion dollars more than they receive.[118] The state of Long Island would have included nearly 3 million people (a larger population than that of fifteen other states). Nassau County executive Ed Mangano came out in support of such a proposal in April 2010 and commissioned a study on it.[119]
Nassau Coliseum and Jones Beach Theater are venues used by national touring acts as performance spaces for concerts. Jones Beach Theater is a popular place to view summer concerts that feature new and classic artists. It also hosts a large Fourth of July fireworks show annually.
Long Island is also known for its school music programs. Many schools in both Nassau and Suffolk County have distinguished music programs, with high numbers of students who are accepted into the statewide All-State music groups, or even the National All-Eastern Coast music groups. Both the Suffolk County and Nassau County Music Educator’s Associations are recognized by The National Association for Music Education (NAfME),[123][124] and host numerous events, competitions, and other music-related activities.
The Big Duck in Flanders in August 2018A winery and tasting room in a 1690 farmhouse near Stony Brook in May 2014
Long Island has historically been a center for fishing and seafood. This legacy continues in the Blue Pointoyster, a now ubiquitous variety originally harvested on the Great South Bay that was the favorite oyster of Queen Victoria. Clams are also a popular food and clam digging a popular recreational pursuit, with Manhattan clam chowder reputed to have Long Island origins.[125]
Of land-based produce, Long Island duck has a history of national recognition since the 19th century, with four duck farms continuing to produce 2 million ducks a year as of 2013.[126] Two symbols of Long Island’s duck farming heritage are the Long Island Ducks minor-league baseball team and the Big Duck, a 1931 duck-shaped building that is a historic landmark and tourist attraction. In addition to Long Island’s duck industry, Riverhead contains one of the largest buffalo farms on the East coast.[127]
Long Island is well known for its production of alcoholic beverages. Eastern Long Island is a significant producer of wine. Vineyards are most heavily concentrated on Long Island’s North Fork, which contains 38 wineries. Most of these contain tasting rooms, which are popular attractions for visitors from across the New York metropolitan area.[128] Long Island has also become a producer of diverse craft beers, with 15 microbreweries across Nassau and Suffolk counties as of 2013. The largest of these is Blue Point Brewing Company, best known for its toasted lager.[129] Long Island is also globally known for its signature cocktail, the Long Island Iced Tea, which was purportedly invented at the popular Babylon Town Oak Beach Inn nightclub in the 1970s.[130]
The Barclays Center, a sports arena, business, and residential complex built partly on a platform over the Atlantic Yards at Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, is the home of the Brooklyn Nets and New York Liberty basketball teams. The move from New Jersey in the summer of 2012 marked the return to Long Island for the Nets franchise, which played at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale from 1972 to 1977. The New York Islanders hockey team played at Nassau Coliseum from their 1972 inception through 2015, and then splitting time between Nassau Coliseum and Barclays Center from 2017 to 2021, playing their last full season at the Nassau Coliseum during the 2020-2021 NHL Season. The Islanders moved full-time to UBS Arena at Belmont Park, in Elmont, New York, in November 2021.
Despite this success during the latter part of the team’s stay in Brooklyn, they were a second-division team with an unspectacular winning record for much of their history there – but nonetheless became legendary for the almost-fanatical devotion of the Brooklynites who packed the relatively small ballpark to vigorously root for the team they affectionately called, “Dem Bums”. Loss of the Dodgers to California was locally considered a civic tragedy that negatively affected the community far more than the similar moves of other established teams to new cities in the 1950s, including the Dodgers’ long-time arch-rival New York Giants, who also left for California after 1957.
There are eleven road crossings out of Long Island, all but one providing Brooklyn-Manhattan, Queens-Manhattan, and Queens-Bronx connections across the East River, with the Triborough Bridge providing two connections from Queens, one each to Manhattan and the Bronx. The single non-East River crossing is the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, connecting Brooklyn to Staten Island across The Narrows. Plans for a Long Island Sound link at locations in Nassau and Suffolk counties (a proposed bridge or tunnel that would link Long Island to the south with Westchester County, New York or Connecticut to the north across Long Island Sound) have been discussed for decades, but there are no plans to construct such a crossing.
The MTA considers itself to be the largest regional public transportation provider in the Western Hemisphere. As of 2018, MTA agencies move about 8.6 million customers per day (translating to 2.65 billion rail and bus customers a year).[133] The MTA’s systems carry over 11 million passengers on an average weekday systemwide, and over 850,000 vehicles on its seven toll bridges and two tunnels per weekday.[134]
The Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) is North America’s busiest commuter railroad system, carrying an average of 282,400 passengers each weekday on 728 daily trains. Chartered on April 24, 1834, and operating continuously since, it is also the oldest railroad in the U.S. that still operates under its original charter and name. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has operated the LIRR as one of its two commuter railroads since 1966, and the LIRR is one of the few railroads worldwide that provides service all the time, year round.[135][136] A $2 billion plan to add a third railroad track to the LIRR Main Line between the Floral Park and Hicksville stations in Nassau County was completed in 2022,[137] and an expansion of the Ronkonkoma Branch from one to two tracks was completed in 2018.[138] Five “readiness projects” across the LIRR system, which cost a combined $495 million, were built in preparation for expanded peak-hour LIRR service after the completion of East Side Access, which brings LIRR trains to Grand Central Madison in Manhattan.[139][140][141]
Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) provides bus service in Nassau County, while Suffolk County Transit, an agency of the Suffolk County government, provides bus service in Suffolk County. In 2012, NICE replaced the former MTA‘s Long Island Bus in transporting Long Islanders across Nassau County while allowing them to use MTA MetroCards as payment.[142]
Several hundred transportation companies service the Long Island and New York City areas. Winston Airport Shuttle, the oldest of these companies in business since 1973, was the first to introduce door-to-door shared-ride service to and from the major airports, which almost all transportation companies now use.[144]
_in_Woodbridge,_New_Jersey.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
_017_-_UBS_Arena.jpg)
.jpg)
_04a.jpg)
