It is believed that the first inhabitants of the Remsenburg-Speonk area were from the Shinnecock Nation, which meant "People of the Stony Shore." They were part of the Algonquian Nation. Indeed, the name “Speonk” is from the Algonquian language, meaning a “high place.”
The village of Speonk was settled around 1740 by the Halseys, Tuthills, and Rogers. Community members at that time would fish, hunt, and grow their own crops and livestock. Surplus harvest would be shipped by sloops to city markets. The arrival of the railroad in about 1870 harkened a change in life for the community. Fordham’s Mill developed as a center of industry and functioned as carriage-maker, wheelwright, and even a coffin-maker. Duck farming became popular in the 1800s as well. The Speonk Terminal was built in 1910.
A landmark in Remsenburg-Speonk history occurred when Dr. Charles Remsen donated a new brick Presbyterian Church in 1854. A rift occurred when some residents wanted to change the name from Speonk to Remsenburg in his honor. Signs at the railroad station were changed multiple times by protesting community members, people were unsure of which post office to use, and the scandal was mentioned in the newspapers of the day. Even today, the boundary between Remsenburg and Speonk is difficult to define; we are the Remsenburg-Speonk community.
The first school in the Remsenburg-Speonk Community was established prior to 1796 in the location of the current Church Parsonage on South Country Road. It was a private school sponsored by the families of the 41 pupils in attendance.
When the common school law went into effect in 1813, district lines changed and left the community without a public school. Community members worked together to raise funds to construct a building that would act as both school and house of worship. Even after it no longer functioned, the building continued to stand until it was destroyed by a fire from a nearby grocery store in 1898. The Remsenburg Post Office now stands at this location.
A second school was built at 132 South Country Road around 1886. In 1918, a third school was built on the corner of Main Street and South Phillips Avenue. The small building was in use through 1966 until the growing population of 80 students crowded the school and the need for adequate facilities became apparent. Today, this location is a park and garden. The war memorial housed there is the destination for our students’ annual Memorial Day Parade.
For more information about the history of our community, please see “A History of Remsenburg” by Charles J. McDermott and the 2003 Revision of “A History of Remsenburg.”
Remsenburg-Speonk Community Resources
The Greater Westhampton Chamber of Commerce
The Remsenburg Association
Southampton Town Government
The Speonk-Remsenburg Civic Association
Remsenburg-Speonk residents may join one of the following local public libraries:
- Center Moriches Library
- Riverhead Free Library
- Westhampton Free Library
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