Dune Road Cottage

A visit to the village of Quogue gives one the feeling of grandeur and opulence rarely experienced in traveling throughout the country today. Its tree-lined streets, well-manicured lawns and stately Victorian mansions blend together to make Quogue one of the most desirable areas in the Hamptons. By contrast, Dune Road on the ocean in Quogue boasts the most outstanding examples of contemporary home architecture in the world.

Quogue is one of the oldest communities on Long Island, having been founded in 1640 when 40 Puritan Freeholders from Lynn, Massachusetts paid 10 pounds in “good strong merchantable wampum” for the area which was to become Quogue. The land purchased was valuable for its broad meadow, which was called “Shennecock Meadow,” and for the “bonack” or ground nut which grew wild there. The bonack was an important staple of the early settlers and Indians as well. Quogue was also strategically located at a spot where whales were frequently cast up on the beach. The oil and other by-products obtained from the whales played an important role in the early economy of the area.

In 1835, Quogue was the second regular overnight stop on the stagecoach run from Brooklyn to Southampton. Travelers became aware of the beauty of the Quogue beach during these stopovers, and with the establishment of railroad service in 1844, large numbers of summer boarders were attracted to the area. Around the turn of the century, families which had summered at the hotels and boarding houses began to build one-family homes. This led to more elaborate landscaping, which transformed the open meadows into the village of today.

Remsenburg on the western edge of the Greater Westhampton area is perhaps one of the most beautiful communities to be found anywhere in the eastern United States.

Tree-lined streets wind their way through row after row of country homes and quaint cottages surrounded by well-manicured lawns and beautifully cultivated gardens, all of which seem to transplant the visitor into the midst of a quiet New England Village.

Westhampton Beach is by far the center of activity for the Greater Westhampton area. Its trendy, sophisticated shops combined with its outstanding restaurants, nighttime entertainment and beautiful ocean beaches serve to attract the attention of the rich and famous, who flock to the area every season to enjoy the best of the Hamptons. Tourism is still a major source of revenue for area residents, but in recent years, more and more of the seasonal visitors are becoming year-round residents. This trend is beginning to give the local economy a year-round flavor and the high quality of life available in the Greater Westhampton area is being enjoyed by more and more people every year.

The Westhampton Beach of today is a far cry from the one first settled in 1666 as part of the Quogue Purchase. Then it was a quiet, sleepy community that experienced its first real estate boom in 1675 when buying land there for investment purposes became very popular. However, development was slow and the hamlet remained very small for nearly a century-and-a-half. It was not until 1870, when the railroad reached Westhampton Beach, that development really began. People began spending summers there, and the character and economic development of the village was altered. As the village began to develop into a flourishing summer resort, real estate kept pace with the changing times, and values increased considerably. In the same era, agriculture lost importance as the local people found new occupations. The onceprosperous farmlands were sold to make way for summer homes and hotels. The first hotel was the Howell House built in 1868 with the financial backing of P.T. Barnum. The Oneck House and the Ketchaboneck House were soon built, and it was not long before bathhouses were erected on the oceanfront at the foot of Beach Lane, now the site of Rogers Beach and Pavilion.

Today, the Greater Westhampton area offers its residents a truly high quality of life. Its community activities provide a sense of identity, while its schools and governmental facilities are among the finest available.

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