Hampton Bays is a hamlet and CDP within the Town of Southampton. It contains a great deal of waterfront land with the Great Peconic Bay on its north side, and Shinnecock and Tiana Bays (parts of the Great South Bay system) in the south. The area was first made home by European settlers in...
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Hampton Bays is a hamlet and CDP within the Town of Southampton. It contains a great deal of waterfront land with the Great Peconic Bay on its north side, and Shinnecock and Tiana Bays (parts of the Great South Bay system) in the south. The area was first made home by European settlers in 1740 under the name of Good Ground. In 1922, Good Ground combined with several surrounding hamlets to form the larger are that is now known as Hampton Bays; the name was changed in an effort to capitalize on the increased trade and traffic of the surrounding “Hamptons” areas.
As is the case for much of the region, tourism is now a vital piece of the Hampton Bays economy. Jet skiing, horseback riding, camping, hiking trails, annual events and craft shows, and an active nightlife scene make it a popular destination for many tourists and residents of nearby communities. Commercial fishing also plays a key role, as the hamlet serves as the industry’s second busiest port in New York; one report shows that $8 million in finfish and shellfish was brought through the Hampton Bays in 2006 alone. Its beautiful scenery has also made the town an attractive locale for filming, with the recent movie Margot at the Wedding being filmed there.
The hamlet is served by the Hampton Bays Union Free School District, which operates three buildings. Hampton Bays Middle School was opened in 2008 to alleviate congestion in the Elementary and High schools, which to that point held all of the district’s students between them. The middle school claims to be the first “green” school in New York.
As of the 2010 census, the total population of Hampton Bays was 13,603 with 5,079 households averaging about two and a half persons per home. The median household income was $64,935 with males making $50,968 and females making $42,367.
