The long Island scene was very different in the years before the American Revolution than it is today. The island was then largely a rural environment. Yet there are sonie things that have changed little. The same stars that adorned the heavens then may be seen today, although they appear less brilliant in our polluted skies. And there remain a few places on the island that appear to have changed little during the two centuries that have elapsed. Some of these may be found on the ocean side of the Montauk Peninsula where the surf pounds the shore at the foot of steep sandbanks and sea gulls wheel overhead as they have since the days of the Indians. The visitor to one of those beaches can easily become lost in reveries of the past, although sooner or later the spell will be broken by the sight of a jet plane or some other twentieth century interloper.
    Prior to the Revolution the far western end of the island had a large Dutch population, most of whom were descendants of the earliest settlers who crossed the East River from New Amsterdam in the first half of the seventeenth century. And some of the old-timers still spoke the language of their forebears. The rest of the island was peopled mostly by the English, many of whom were descended from those who had come from New England.
    With the exception of the Village of Hempstead and perhaps a few small hamlets that were located far inland, the communities were established along the north shore, on the western end and the eastern flukes, there being few or none on the south shore.
    In those days this land was known officially as the "Island of Nassau". It was so called in most legal documents, although the inhabitants usually referred to it as "Long Island" in conversation, as we do today.
    Many of the islands place-names were different. The present Port WashingtonManhasset Peninsula was known as Cow Neck, Orient Point was Oyster Pond Point, Brookville was Wolver Hollow, and Glen Cove was Musquito Cove; to name only a few.
    Of course the islands population was considerably less than today, and differently distributed. We learn from Silas Woods  Sketch of the First Settlements that in 1771, five years before the Battle of Long Island, Suffolk County had the largest number of residents, numbering 13,128. The population of Queens County was 10,980, and that of Kings County is given as 3,623. These figures indicate that the total population of the island was 27,731. That is considerably less than that of some of our villages now. And two centuries ago the population of New York (Manhattan Island) was around 21,163, most of it on the southern part, while much of the rest was farmland.
    In those days deer, wild fowl and other game were plentiful throughout much of the island, fish of many species abounded in the offshore waters and shellfish could be had for the taking along the shores, while many areas now heavily populated were overgrown with timber.
    Much of the plains area south of the moraines that run lengthwise of the island was covered with grass, making it ideal for the cultivation of crops and raising livestock, including cattle and sheep. But on the eastern flukes, where the call of the sea was strongest, there were commercial fisheries, while shellfish were gathered in the shallow harbors and bays. Sag Harbor was an important whaling port, the busiest on the island, from which huge square-riggers embarked on voyages around the world in pursuit of the great leviathans whose oil, blubber and whalebone was in great demand.
    There were also extensive wooded areas south of the moraines in Suffolk County. This was for manyyears the principal source of cordwood for New York. After being cut, much of it was hauled to the north shore landings over sandy roads and shipped to New York on sailing vessels by way of Long Island Sound and the East River.
    There were few roads then and, when possible, people traveled between the north shore villages by way of Long Island Sound. What roads did exist were unpaved. In the spring they were often hub deep in mud. The deep ruts were sometimes frozen in winter, which made for uncomfortable riding, while in summer and autumn they were sometimes ankle deep in dust. What roads there were ran between the villages, from the villages to the outlying farms, from the farms to the fields where crops were planted and livestock pastured. There were a few roads between the north and south shores, but many years were to go by before any were built connecting the eastern and western ends of the island.
    Most of the villages were sparsely populated and in many the stores and other places of business were clustered near the millponds, and in the shore communities, near the landings. There were merchants, blacksmiths, coopers, tanners, weavers, cobblers, tailors, tavern keepers, carpenters and others, all of whom served some specific need of the village.
    The farms were usually located on the outskirts of the villages and many farm families were very nearly self-sufficient, at least for food and clothing. The livestock provided meat and dairy products, and most farmers raised enough vegetables and fruit for their own use. Sheen provided mutton and wool. Linen wasmade from flax grown on the farms, and in some cases, shoes for the family, harness for the horses, and other items were fashioned from the hides of the cattle they raised.
    The farm houses, barns and other outbuildings were built from beams, planks and shingles made from timber that grew nearby. The bricks for chimneys and fireplaces were made from clay obtained on the island and the foundations of the houses were constructed from bricks and field stones gathered nearby.
    The fireplaces were usually very large and served both for cooking and providing heat. Illumination was usually provided by candles made by the housewife and whale oil that they purchased from local merchants.
    While most of the essentials for comfortable living were available on Long Island two centuries ago, some had to be imported. Among them was window glass, probably from New York. Much of the hardware was obtained elsewhere, although in many instances such items as hinges and latches for doors, farm implements and other articles of metal were fashioned by local blacksmiths. But the metals of which they were made had to be gotten elsewhere, since they were not available on the island.
    Although the Long Islanders of those days lacked many of the conveniences that we enjoy today, their activities were less disrupted by great storms, as sometimes happens with us. Most of us can remember times when severe wind storms have abruptly cut off our light and heat. But in the days before electric lights and oil heat such inconveniences were unknown. On the other hand, there were some occasions when their villages were pretty much isolated by heavy snow storms and transportation through Long Island Sound impossible because of rough seas. And there were times when their sailing ships were becalmed for lack of sufficient wind.
    From the early days of settlement until the island was occupied by the British, following the Battle of Long Island late in August of 1776. the residents of the English towns conducted most of their public affairs at town meetings, much as was done in New England. The men of the town attended these meetings which were held at stated times in the town hall or elsewhere. Usually the male residents of the town, who were over twenty one years of age and property owners, were called "free-holders" and permitted to vote.
    A great variety of matters were considered at these meetings upon which they voted after an open discussion, during which all concerned were permitted to voice their opinions. Many of the matters were of great importance to the residents and sometimes the discussions became rather heated. They frequently concerned the building of roads, the erection of fences, the location of property lines and matters of similar nature. And at certain specified times there was an election of town officers.The existing records of those town meetings and other contempoiaiy sources are very useful today in helping us to picture events on Long Island during the years prior to the Revolution. During the latter half of the eighteenth century far more serious matters than the building of roads and fences appeared on the agendas of many of the islands town meetings. These were concerned largely with the friction that wasbuilding up between the colonies and the mother country because of the increasingly numerous taxes being levied on them, the billeting of British troops in America, and other acts that most of us remember learning about from our school days. One of the main objections was that these acts were passed by the British Parliament where none of the colonies was represented.
    There were British troops in Boston, and their warships lay at anchor in the harbor. And there were occasions when some of those ships appeared in the waters off the eastern end of Long Island, where they sent landing parties ashore to replenish their supply of fresh water and to forage for food which they took with or without permission of the owners.
    News traveled very slowly two hundred years ago. Many days passed before Long Islanders learned of the momentous events at Boston and Philadelphia.
    This was especially true in winter, when travel, both by land and water, was often difficult and sometimes impossible. The news from those far off communities often had less impact on many Long Islanders than does news from beyond the horizon today. This was especially true on the farms where the families were occupied from dawn to dark with planting, cultivating and harvesting, caring for their livestock, and numerous other chores that had to be done regardless of what was happening in far off Massachusetts and Pennsylvania.
    It was somewhat different with the merchants and others whose lives were more directly influenced by the British. This was the case with those living in the larger villages and near the shores, where laws passed by the mother country had a more direct impact. The activities of the British were felt by the fishermen whose boats plied the islands offshore waters and the whale-men whose large square-riggers embarked from Sag Harbor on voyages to distant seas.
    By then British import taxes were nothing new to Long Islanders. As early as the closing years of the seventeenth century taxes were being levied on rum and other commodities. It is written that rum was smuggled into Southold, Setauket, Oyster flay and Musquito Cove and then to New York. Indeed, we are told that fully two-thirds of the rum smuggled into New York came through those ports, and there is good reason to assume that considerable quantities of that rum were consumed in the ports mentioned before ever reaching their intended destination.
    Relations between the colonies and the mother country slowly deteriorated as the eighteenth century wore on. They became increasingly strained following the French and Indian \Var, in which many Long Islanders served with the British Army and at sea. As the decade of the 1760s neared its close it became evident that armed conflict between England and her American colonies was a probability, although most leaders on both sides hoped that it could somehow be avoided.
    While Long Island was geographically a separate entity from the mainland there were compelling reasons why its inhabitants could not escape becoming involved if war came. Important among these was its proximity to Manhattan Island and the mainland. Another was the fact that large numbers of its inhabitants had close ties with families living in New York and New England.
    To make matters even more difficult, large numbers of the islands inhabitants were sympathetic to the British cause. These included a majority of the Dutch at the western end of the island, a predominant number of those living in Queens County, and even a few in Suffolk County, although most of its residents favored the colonists.It was also clearly evident that if war came Long Islands strategic position close to Manhattan, the mouth of the Hudson River and the mainland would make it a valuable prize.
    Reports reaching the island from the Boston area and elsewhere became increasingly ominous around the mid 1770s. British warships were being sighted more frequently in Long Island Sound and other offshore waters, and there were numerous incidents of foraging parties coming ashore.
    Although the principal areas of conflict were as yet many miles away, they sparked serious repercussions on the island and there was little doubt in the minds of many of its inhabitants that it would be only a matter of time before they would become directly involved.
    We know today that those dire predictions were correct. At the end of August, 1776, there was fought on the western end of Long Island one of the most terrible battles of the Revolution. General Washingtonstroops were soundly defeated, and all of the island, from the Narrows to Montauk Point, was dominated by the British from then to the end of the war.

First appearing in the LI Forum 1960 No Copyright Information Data Found