Sayville was founded by John Edwards (b. 1738) of East Hampton, New York. He built his home, the first in Sayville, in 1761, located at what is now the northwest corner of Foster Avenue and Edwards Street. The house was destroyed by fire in March 1913. Another man, John Greene, settled what is now known as West Sayville in 1767.
The community had no formal name until 1838 when residents gathered to choose a name for their post office, which had opened on March 22, 1837.[3] Until that time, Sayville was known informally as "over south." The townspeople held a meeting to decide on a name, and after Edwardsville and Greensville tied in a vote, one resident suggested "Seaville". According to historical accounts, the clerk at that particular meeting did not know how to spell and had to go home and look in an old Bible he had brought from England years before. In the Bible, the word "sea" was spelled "s-a-y",[4][dubious–discuss][need quotation to verify] and "Sayville" became the name he sent to Washington. After the error was discovered, the community sent a letter of protest to Washington D.C.; however, the Postmaster General responded[5] that the name should stay "Sayville", as there were many "Seaville"s in the world but no "Sayville"s. As a result, the name stuck. The claim is also sometimes made that "in some very old Bibles, the town name is also spelled 'S-a-v-i-l-l-e'".,[6] It may be noted that until the early 19th Century, it was common in many varieties of English to pronounce "sea" so that it rhymed with "obey", and thus "Sayville" could have been a phonetic representation of how some speakers would have pronounced "Seaville."
South Face of Meadow Croft
Sayville became important mainly for its timber and oysters. Beginning in 1868, when the South Side Railroad arrived, the hamlet became a summer tourist destination. Over 30 hotels were built in the area, which hosts a ferry to Fire Island. Between 1880 and 1930, many grand homes and estates were built in Sayville, including Meadow Croft, the home of John Ellis Roosevelt, a cousin of Theodore Roosevelt. Meadow Croft still stands and is part of Suffolk County's San Souci Lakes Nature Preserve.
In 1912 a GermanTelefunken wireless transmitter was built in Sayville (now West Sayville) to broadcast to Germany. In 1915 the transmitter allegedly relayed a message from the German embassy to "get Lucy", referring to the RMS Lusitania which was sunk on May 15.[citation needed] Whether the signals coming from the transmitter in Sayville authorized the attack or not, they caused concern for the US government, which dispatched Marines to ensure that encrypted messages were not sent. The station was seized by the government outright after war was declared in 1917. PresidentWoodrow Wilson sent a contingent of Marines to seize the wireless station, making it the first hostile action taken by the United States against Germany during World War I.
The elaborate home of the late "Father Divine" on Macon Avenue in Sayville
From 1919 to 1932 Sayville was home to Father Divine, a controversial African American religious leader who claimed to be God. His religious movement, which came to be called the International Peace Mission movement, managed a commune-like house on 72 Macon Avenue, which was the first black-owned residence in Sayville. At that time Sayville was predominantly a seasonal resort, and Father Divine's followers made good livings as native house sitters. Because followers turned over all of their profits to Father Divine, he was able to build several expansions on the house. He even bought an expensive Cadillac when neighbors complained about his noisy Hudson automobile.
Father Divine's ostentation annoyed the middle-class residents. Excess traffic that Father Divine attracted made him unpopular even to businesses he patronized with large cash purchases. Following a June 1932 trial and prison sentence for disturbing the peace, Father Divine moved to Harlem, New York, claiming that Sayville was racist. However, the commune remained on Macon Avenue for many years. Father Divine occasionally preached in Sayville afterward, but the home was only an outpost of his movement, not its headquarters.
On January 27, 1992, a 20 year old man was charged with arson following a fire that destroyed 19th century buildings on Main Street.[7] In August of that same year, Louis Gelsomino, an 18 year old on the Sayville volunteer fire department was charged with two counts of murder and five counts of arson for starting the previous fire.[8]
The aftermath of the fire that occurred in Sayville, New York on October 25, 2024.
On October 25, 2024 around 5:30 P.M., multiple stores on Sayville's Main Street were caught in a fire, with six of the stores damaged.[10] The cause of this two hour long fire is currently unknown, though a "Sayville Main Street Fire Relief Fund" was made by the Greater Sayville Chamber of Commerce to help affected businesses.[11]
The Sayville School District consists of one high school, one middle school, and three elementary schools. The high school is located in West Sayville on Brook Street. The middle school is located on Johnson Avenue. The elementary schools are on Sunrise Drive, Lincoln Avenue, and Cherry Avenue, named after their respective streets. Lincoln and Sunrise Elementary Schools are both located in Sayville. Cherry Avenue Elementary School is located in West Sayville. Parts of Sayville attend Connetquot School District.
Library
The area is served by the Sayville Public Library, located at 88 Greene Ave (ZIP code 11782-2723) [14]
Postal service
The area is served by the Sayville post office, located at 130 Greene Avenue (ZIP code 11782-2723).
The hamlet is bordered by the bay to the south, Sunrise Highway to the north, Brown Creek to the east, and Greenes Creek to the west.
According to the United States Census Bureau, Sayville CDP has a total area of 5.4 square miles (13.9km2), of which 5.3 square miles (13.7km2) is land and 0.077 square miles (0.2km2) (1.21%) is water.[2]
Sayville is covered by the Sayville Fire Department, a New York State-designated fire district. The Sayville Fire Department is the volunteer fire department agency employed by the Sayville Fire District to provide fire protection for this area. This agency responds to all fire-related emergencies and motor vehicle crashes with personal injury, as well as numerous other emergency incidents within the borders of the Sayville Fire District. The Sayville Fire Department is a certified New York State fire department.
Sayville receives emergency medical services from Community Ambulance Company Inc. This volunteer ambulance company responds to all medical emergencies within the Sayville, West Sayville, Bayport, Bohemia, and Oakdale area. They are a certified New York State Department of Health, Emergency Medical Service agency that provides Advanced Life Support (ALS) care.[16]
Sayville Fire Department along Lincoln Avenue just north of Montauk Highway
Community Ambulance Company on Swayze Street just west of Railroad Avenue in 2012. The company moved to 420 Lakeland Avenue in October 2014
As of the census[18] of 2000, there were 16,735 people, 5,603 households, and 4,353 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 3,028.4/mi2 (1,168.4/km2). There were 5,721 housing units at an average density of 1,035.3/mi2 (399.4/km2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 95.81% White, 0.72% African American, 0.04% Native American, 2.03% Asian, 0.48% from other races, and 0.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.02% of the population.
There were 5,603 households, out of which 40.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.2% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.3% were non-families. 17.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.92 and the average family size was 3.34.
In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 27.2% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.9 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $75,236, and the median income for a family was $85,229. Males had a median income of $57,055 versus $35,091 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $28,723. About 2.5% of families and 4.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 4.6% of those age 65 or over.
Suffolk County is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of New York, constituting the eastern two-thirds of Long Island. It is bordered to its west by Nassau County, to its east by Gardiners Bay and the open Atlantic Ocean, to its north by Long Island Sound, and to its south by the Atlantic Ocean.
Lamont is a census-designated place (CDP) in Kern County, California, United States. Lamont is located 9 miles (14 km) south-southeast of downtown Bakersfield, at an elevation of 404 feet (123 m). The population was 15,120 at the 2010 census, up from 13,296 at the 2000 census.
Bay Shore is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Islip, New York, United States. It is situated on the South Shore of Long Island, adjoining the Great South Bay. The population of the CDP was 29,244 at the time of the 2020 census.
Bayport is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Islip, Suffolk County, New York, United States, on Long Island. The population was 8,609 at the 2020 census.
Bellport is a village in the Town of Brookhaven in Suffolk County, on the South Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 2,084 at the 2010 census.
Bohemia is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 9,852 at the 2020 census. It is situated along the South Shore of Long Island in the Town of Islip, approximately 50 miles from New York City.
Brentwood is a hamlet in the Town of Islip in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 62,387 at the 2020 Census, making it the most populous CDP in Suffolk County and on all of Long Island outside of New York City.
Commack is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the towns of Huntington and Smithtown in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York. The CDP's population was 36,124 at the 2010 census.
Copiague is a hamlet on Long Island in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 23,429 at the 2020 census. Copiague is an unincorporated place within Babylon.
East Patchogue is a census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Brookhaven in Suffolk County, on the South Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 22,469 at the 2010 census. The CDP is a proximate representation of the East Patchogue hamlet used for statistical purposes of the Census Bureau.
Great River is a suburban hamlet and CDP in the Town of Islip in Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is situated approximately 50 miles (80 km) east of New York City on the South Shore of Long Island, adjoining the Great South Bay, protected from the Atlantic Ocean by Fire Island.
Islip Terrace is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Islip in Suffolk County, on the South Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 5,323 at the time of the 2020 census.
Oakdale is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 7,974 at the 2010 census. Oakdale is in the Town of Islip. It has been home to Gilded Age mansions, the South Side Sportsmen's Club, the main campus of Dowling College and the Long Island Sharks hockey team. TSPL, “Trampoline Soccer Premier League” was also created here. It is now home to Connetquot River State Park Preserve.
West Sayville is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in Suffolk County, New York, United States. It had a population of 5,011 at the 2010 census.
Wyandanch is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Babylon in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 12,990 at the time of 2020 census.
Islip is a town in Suffolk County, New York, United States, on the South Shore of Long Island. The population was 335,543 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth most populous city or town in the New York metropolitan area.
Islip is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) that lies within the town of the same name in Suffolk County, New York. Located on the south shore of Long Island, the CDP had a population of 18,869 at the time of the 2010 census, a decline of 8% from the 2000 census.
Fire Island is the large center island of the outer barrier islands parallel to the South Shore of Long Island in the U.S. state of New York.
Montauk Highway is an east–west road extending for 95 miles (153 km) across the southern shore of Long Island in Suffolk County, New York, in the United States. It extends from the Amityville/Copiague village/hamlet line in Amityville, where it continues as Merrick Road, to Montauk Point State Park at the very eastern end of Long Island in Montauk. The highway is known by several designations along its routing, primarily New York State Route 27A (NY 27A) from the county line to Oakdale and NY 27 east of Southampton. The portion of Montauk Highway between Oakdale and Southampton is mostly county-maintained as County Route 80 and County Route 85.
The Suffolk Traction Company is a former streetcar system in Suffolk County, New York. It operated primarily between Patchogue and Holtsville, but also included a route that served Blue Point, Bayport, and Sayville. It was opened in 1909 and ceased operations in 1919.
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Sayville Fire Department along Lincoln Avenue just north of Montauk Highway
Community Ambulance Company on Swayze Street just west of Railroad Avenue in 2012. The company moved to 420 Lakeland Avenue in October 2014
