The Hamptons, also called the "East End" (of Long Island), are a group of villages and hamlets in the towns of Southampton and East Hampton, which form the South Fork of Long Island, New York, U.S. The Hamptons form a popular seaside resort, one of the historical summer colonies of the American Northeast. The area features some of the most expensive and luxurious residential properties in the U.S.; 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.
The Montauk Branch of the Long Island Rail Road, the Montauk Highway, and private bus services connect the Hamptons to the rest of Long Island and to New York City, while ferries provide connections to Shelter Island, New York and Connecticut.
Stony Brook University's Southampton campus is located in the Hamptons.
Maps, Directions, and Place Reviews
West to east
The Hamptons include the following hamlets and villages in the town of Southampton:
- Westhampton (hamlet)
- Westhampton Beach (village)
- Quogue (village)
- East Quogue (hamlet)
- Hampton Bays (hamlet)
- Shinnecock Hills (hamlet)
- North Sea
- Southampton (village)
- Water Mill
- Bridgehampton
- Sagaponack (village)
- Sag Harbor (village, shared with East and Southampton)
The Hamptons include the following hamlets and villages in the town of East Hampton:
- Sag Harbor (village, shared with Southampton)
- Wainscott
- East Hampton (village)
- Northwest Harbor
- Springs
- Amagansett
The Shinnecock Reservation of the Shinnecock Indian Nation lies within the borders of the Town of Southampton, adjoining Shinnecock Hills and the Village of Southampton.
Places
These areas constitute the core vacation area of the east end of Long Island.
Description
The Hamptons are home to many communities. Historically, it has been devoted to agriculture and fishing. Many farms are still in operation in the area. There are three commercial vineyards operating in the Hamptons as well.
Given the area's geographic location, it maintained stronger commercial and social links to New England and the nearby states of Connecticut and Rhode Island. Many of the original settlers were from and most of the trade links were with communities in Connecticut. Indeed, much of the older architecture and aesthetics of the villages in the Hamptons resemble New England. This is especially true for Sag Harbor Village and East Hampton Village.
Once direct rail links to New York City were established, the community of summer vacation residents expanded significantly. The Village of Southampton, which is the oldest of the Hamptons and the second most westward of the villages, grew rapidly. It remains the largest and most diverse of the Hamptons' towns. The other villages and hamlets grew at a slower rate over time. The agriculture community became supplemented by artisans and professionals (mainly in Southampton Village and Sag Harbor Village), and then by a large influx of artists. As a result, the arts community in the Hamptons has origins extending back to the nineteenth century. The Art Village in Southampton and the community of Springs in East Hampton town hosted a number of resident artists and art schools (e.g., the Shinnecock Hills Summer School founded by William Merritt Chase).
More prominently, the entire Hamptons region increasingly became a haven for affluent summer season vacationers. Southampton Village, which hosted the earliest summer community of socially prominent residents and was arguably the center for upper class Americans, served as home to members of the Ford, Du Pont, Morgan, Atterbury, Woolworth and Eisenhower families. Other affluent communities developed over time in East Hampton Village, Wainscott (particularly in its Georgica Association) and in Bridgehampton.
Sag Harbor Village became noted for its community of affluent African American residents who settled a number of bay front communities on the eastern side of the Village. These neighborhoods include Azurest, Sag Harbor Hills, Nineveh Beach, Eastville and Hillcrest Terrace. Current and former residents include a long list of the notable and affluent African Americans - Colson Whitehead; Earl Graves and Susan L. Taylor, who blazed trails in publishing with Black Enterprise and Essence magazines, respectively; American Express executive Kenneth Chenault; and General Colin Powell, who spent summers there as a youth.
Current Profile
Today, the Hamptons' residents include many of New York City's most affluent residents, as well as a number of affluent people from other nearby states, executives, and increasingly, foreigners from Europe and South America.
The villages and the hamlets are distinguished by their significant population increases during the summers, although the The Hamptons have increasingly become a year-round destinations for New Yorkers seeking a refuge on weekends.
Residential real estate prices in the Hamptons rank among the highest in the nation, and, as of 2015, the real estate market was very strong with prices rising for both home buyers and sellers and rentals. Historically, real estate south of Route 27 ("south of the highway"), the main transportation artery in the Hamptons, was more highly valued. Land south of Route 27 is closer to the ocean, and the road served as a marker for social standing and land valuation. The most expensive neighborhoods lie south of the highway, and most of all in the so-called Estate Areas of Southampton Village, Water Mill, Bridgehampton, Sagaponack and East Hampton Village. Notable streets include Ox Pasture Road, Halsey Neck Lane, Coopers Neck Lane and First Neck Lane in Southampton Village and Lee Avenue and West End Road in East Hampton Village. In particular, oceanfront property commands a high premium over other real estate. The oceanfront streets in Southampton Village (Gin Lane and Meadow Lane) and East Hampton Village (Lily Pond Lane and Further Lane) rank among the most expensive roads in the country. Meadow Lane has actually been called Billionaires' Row, and cited as having among the highest home values in the country.
In particular, Sagaponack, Water Mill and Bridgehampton were cited by Business Week magazine as being the first, sixth and eighth most expensive ZIP Codes in the nation, respectively. In 2015, according to Business Insider, the 11962 ZIP Code encompassing Sagaponack, within Southampton, was listed as the most expensive in the U.S., by real estate-listings site Property Shark, with a median home sale price of $5,125,000.
Amenities in the area include the Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center in East Hampton; the Parrish Art Museum and the Watermill Center in Water Mill; the Guild Hall, a museum and theater, in East Hampton; the Sebonack Golf Club; the Shinnecock Hills Golf Club; National Golf Links of America in Southampton; and the Maidstone Club in East Hampton. The Shinnecock and National golf clubs were recently voted as the number three and number 10 ranked courses in America by Golf Digest magazine. Exclusive private clubs provide additional recreational resources to the very affluent in the area. These clubs include The Bathing Corporation of Southampton, the Southampton Bath and Tennis Club, and the Meadow Club in Southampton Village and the Maidstone Club in East Hampton.
History
The Hamptons' history as a fashionable summer resort and dwelling place of high society date from the late nineteenth century when the community changed from a farming community with good potato ground to a popular destination. In 1893 The New York Times, based on its natural advantages and the quality of the Summer Colony located there, compared The Hamptons favorably with the Garden of Eden:
As of 2015 commercial and residential development and the crush of summer and weekend visitors had reached crisis proportions.
In popular culture
The Hamptons and Hamptons society are frequently featured on-screen and mentioned in films and television, with wealth being the overriding theme.
In films
- In Inside Job, a 2010 documentary film about the financial crisis of 2007-2010 directed by Charles H. Ferguson, The Hamptons is depicted as a hub for Wall Street traders and investment bankers. The film covers a bird's eye view of the beaches and homes in the area.
- In the 2003 film Something's Gotta Give, the main character resides in a beach house on Meadow Lane in Southampton Village.
- The majority of the 1989 film Weekend at Bernie's takes place in The Hamptons.
- In the 2004 film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, the two main characters meet on a train to Montauk.
- The majority of the 2004 film White Chicks takes place in The Hamptons.
- Something Borrowed
- In the 1975 documentary, Grey Gardens.
In television
- In Seinfeld, an episode from Season 5 featured Jerry Seinfeld, Elaine Benes, George Costanza, and Cosmo Kramer visiting the Hamptons where various antics occur (including the appearance of an ugly baby, Kramer illegally obtaining lobsters from cages, and George getting caught naked and being a victim of "shrinkage"). In a season 9 episode, George has an "imaginary place in the Hamptons" that he takes the parents of his deceased fiancee Susan to in an impromptu game of "chicken".
- Numerous episodes of The Real Housewives of New York City are filmed in and around The Hamptons, where the cast members participate in the East End social life and charitable events and several cast members own (or previously owned) eastern Long Island homes, e.g., Cindy Barshop, Kelly Killoren Bensimon, LuAnn de Lesseps, Ramona Singer, and Jill Zarin. (Exemplary episodes include 1.3 "The Hamptons"; 2.2 "Hamptons Retreat, No Surrender"; 2.3 "On Their High Horses"; and 4.4 "Ramona'd".)
- In the show Louie, comedian Louie CK performs a stand up comedy set at a private charity function in the Hamptons with comedian Jerry Seinfeld.
- Reality stars Khloé Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick are the main cast of the show Kourtney and Khloé take The Hamptons, that begun airing in November 2014. The show is based on the family spending the summer at a house in The Hamptons, and features guest appearances from other members of the famous family.
- The series Royal Pains takes place in the Hamptons, although most of the series is filmed in surrounding towns and portions of Long Island.
- The series Revenge takes place in the Hamptons, though it is primarily filmed in North Carolina and Los Angeles.
- In addition to this, Gossip Girl was set in The Hamptons during the first two episodes of season 2, while the cast were away from New York City for summer vacation.
- The series Castle has taken place in The Hamptons on three occasions, the first in the show's fifth season. The second was at the end of the show's sixth season. The third and most recent trip to The Hamptons for the show was in the show's seventh season.
- Much of the final season of the series How I Met Your Mother takes place in a fictional hamlet in the Hamptons called "Farhampton".
- On the Showtime cable network show Billions, the lead character, a hedge fund billionaire, purchases a large oceanfront home on Meadow Lane, in Southampton (costing over $60 million) and bringing more negative attention to the lavish lifestyle he lives.
- On the Showtime cable network series The Affair, the lead characters Alison Lockhart (née Bailey) and Noah Solloway meet in Montauk, where much of the series takes place. Alison is a Montauk native.
- The popular food network program Barefoot Contessa is set primarily in the Hamptons and features local ingredients and recipes, usually centered on host Ina Garten's social calendar.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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