Long Island beaches are some of the best in the world - okay, THE best in the world. We have Fire Island, Jones Beach, Robert Moses, the Hamptons, Montauk, Long Beach and even the North Shore beaches (albeit those are a little rocky).
Also read, History: Photos of Smith Point.
Many who grew up in Suffolk County remember spending countless summer days lounging around and soaking up the sun at “Smith’s Point,” actually called Smith Point Park. The beach at Smith Point Park offers up plenty of adventure in summer including swimming, surfing, camping, fishing, off-roading, a boat launch or just a place to set down your blanket and soak up some rays.
Below we gathered up some historical and crazy facts about Smith Point Beach.
William "Tangier" Smith, Namesake of Smith Point
- Smith Point Beach is named for William "Tangier" Smith, an early settler in New York State
- Smith was born in 1655 in England
- He was given grants and purchased land from the native Americans on the south shore of Long Island accumulating more than 81,000 acres of land
- His property was originally known as the Manor of St. George
- Smith was one time mayor of Tangier, Morocco
- Even Long Islanders mispronounce the name of the beach as “Smith’s Point”
Geography
- The beach is actually located in Suffolk County Smith Point Park
- Smith Point Park is the largest park owned by Suffolk County
- Smith Point Beach is located at the eastern end of Fire Island
- Interestingly, the park gets its name from Smith Point, a peninsula on the mainland that juts into Bellport Bay
- And Smith Point peninsula is not actually a part of the park
- Northeasters and Superstorm Sandy have taken a toll on the beach causing erosion
- The park once extended from the east end of the Fire Island Wilderness portion of the National Seashore to the end of the island at Moriches Inlet, but its west end has been cut short by the breach created during Superstorm Sandy (cite: US Harbors website)
- In 2015, the United States Army Corps of Engineers put about 2.5 million cubic yards of sand onto the beaches to restore them
- Smith Point Park is habitat to piping plover and the outer beach is often closed due to unfledged (chicks that do not have feathers yet and cannot fly) birds spotted in the area
- Piping plovers are considered threatened under federal guidelines and are endangered in New York State
- Smith Point also hosts a number of different species of birds
- Gulls, Loons, Osprey, Canada Geese, Turkey Vultures, and Bald Eagle have all been spotted there
- Every year, thousands of hawks can be spotted in their migration from August to November
Photo: Shutterstock.
The Bridge
- A wooden footbridge to connect Smith Point Beach to the mainland of Long Island was built in 1911
- It was originally called Tangier Bridge
- The bridge had been destroyed by ice flows a few years later
- In 1959, a steel drawbridge bridge was erected and opened on July 4th of that year
- It crosses the narrows between the Great South Bay to the west and Moriches Bay to the east
- It is the southern terminus of William Floyd Parkway
- According to the Mastics-Moriches-Shirley Community Library, Robert Moses attended the dedication ceremony
- The bridge spans 1,216 feet and carries about 1 million vehicles to the beach every year
- There was a toll of 75 cents to cross the bridge when it opened
- This bridge is the one still in use today
- There are only two bridges that connect Fire Island to the mainland - one is the Fire Island Inlet Bridge (Robert Moses Bridge) and the other is the Smith Point Bridge
- There is a plan to replace the Smith Point Bridge
- Construction is slated to start in 2022
- The new bridge will not be a drawbridge and have a 55-foot vertical clearance
- The current bridge has a 22-foot clearance
- The new bridge will be built 125-feet west of the current bridge
- In 2019, the project was estimated at $75 million
- Funding was to come from the federal government, New York State and $7 million allocated by Suffolk County
- The new bridge is planned to last for over 75 years
Development
- At the turn of the 20th Century, a man named Fredrick J. Quimby had grand plans to develop the beach but he went bankrupt trying
- In 1964, Smith Point County Park was designated as part of the Fire Island National Seashore
- Smith Point has a four-wheel drive section that is accessed by a Suffolk County Parks permit
- Off-road vehicles, with permit only, may drive on the eastern portion of the outer beach
- There is a 270-tent campground on the north side of the barrier island
- Reservations are required for all the sites in the campground
- The campground was named one of the 15 best Labor Day camping spots in New York State
- Tiki Joe’s Beach Club serves food and beverages at the beach
- Beach access is gained through a short underground tunnel that dips under the roadway
- "The Son of the Sheik" starring Rudolf Valentino was filmed on the beach in the 1920s
Photo: Shutterstock.
TWA Flight 800
- Tragically, on July 17, 1996, TWA Flight 800, exploded a few miles over the Atlantic off Fire Island killing all 230 passengers
- There is a memorial to TWA Flight 800 which was dedicated on July 17, 2002
Want more crazy facts? Click here to read Crazy Facts About Jones Beach Theater!
