James Neale Ives Plumb residence, Deer Range Farm Park Frontage, 1850
Great River’s story
137 years in pictures
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1850.
- 1889Great River is settled
Great RiverNY
A town of 1,899, settled in 1889.
Population
1,899
Census survey, 2020–24
Typical home
$1.1M
+26.4% in a year
Household income
$136K
median
Median age
53.1
years
Jobs based here
1,074
Balanced
Is Great River a good place to live?
Great River’s median rent is $2,750 a month, above both the New York town median ($1,101 a month) and the median of U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). Only 10 of the 759 New York towns we compare have a lower share of working residents who work in town than Great River. 68% of the land in Great River is conserved, against 5.2% in New York’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. The biggest place to walk is Heckscher State Park, 1,524 acres with 13.7 miles of trail. We don’t grade Great River yet; the figures below are still real.
A growing town
Great River has grown 35% from 2010 to 2020
1,489 counted in 2010 and 2,005 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Nearby attractions
All 547 attractions →Citi Field and 101 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Great River. Close and well known come first.
Big draw36 mi Stadium & arenaCiti Field
Big draw36 mi Stadium & arenaEtihad Park
36 mi GardenFlushing Meadows–Corona Park
23 mi Stadium & arenaNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
36 mi LandmarkUnisphere
39 mi Zoo & aquariumBronx ZooSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Citi Field: Chris6d, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Etihad Park: Bananza76, CC0 · Flushing Meadows–Corona Park: Flapane, Public domain · Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum: iMatthew // talk //, Public domain · Unisphere: Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bronx Zoo: Stavenn, CC BY-SA 3.0
Getting set up
Moving to Great River: who provides what
Great River is unincorporated, so Suffolk County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerPSEG Long Island26.2¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterSuffolk County Water AuthorityNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet3 providers98% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesSuffolk CountySuffolk County provides services here
Register to voteOnlineIn New York you can register online until 10 days before Election Day, in person until 10 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before and received 10 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereSuffolk County Board of ElectionsSuffolk County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Sep 2024
ZIP codes11739, 11730, 1176911739 69% · 11730 30% · 11769 1%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Great River.
Housing
Great River’s typical home value is about $1.1M
The typical Great River home is worth about $1,101,000, up 26.4% in a year, about twice the New York typical home. 67% of households own their home in Great River.
$1.1MZillow home value
Typical home value
Great River$1.1M
New York$525K
Market temperature
52
days on market
98.6%
sale-to-list price
+26.4%
value change, 1 year
5
homes sold in April
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Outdoors
Great River stands out in New York and nationally: trail density there is higher
The trail density in Great River is 4.0 miles per square mile. 23 miles of trail in 5 parks and preserves.
67.8%conserved
67.8%
conserved · 2,501 of 3,687 acres
23 mi
of trails · 3.9 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Heckscher State Park | 13.7 mi | 1,524 |
| 2. Bayard Cutting Arboretum State Park | 6.5 mi | 405 |
| 3. Bayard Cutting Arboretum | 1.2 mi | 33 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Natural hazards
Very low risk in Great River, with inland flooding at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 85% of U.S. communities. Since 1983, 22 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Great River.
15risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingHurricanesCoastal flooding
22
paid flood claims since 1983
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Climate
In Great River, expect four seasons and pleasant summers
Great River has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 25° and about 32 inches of snow falls in a winter.
32″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter28–42°
Spring41–58°
Summer64–81°
Fall49–65°
Nov 2
typical first frost
Apr 10
typical last frost
+2.4°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Work & commute
Most working residents commute out of Great River
Most working residents leave Great River for work: only 2% work in town. Great River’s median household income is $136,000. Jobs based in Great River grew to 1,074 in 2023, 84 more than in 2013.
2%work in town
| Great River | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $136,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 31 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 5.4% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Great River2%
Islip29%
New York20%
Babylon8%
Huntington8%
14 mi
median commute distance
1,074
jobs based in Great River
Balanced
jobs vs. working residents
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Health
Compared with most of New York and the rest of the country, fewer of Great River’s adults feel lonely
27% of Great River adults feel lonely. Great River beats the New York average on 17 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 14% of Great River adults report frequent mental distress.
| Great River | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 32% | 33% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 7.9% | 13% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 21% | 23% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 17% |
32 measures vs. New York
17 better14 too close to call1 worse
| What stands out | Great River | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.6% | 17.2% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 3.9% | 7.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.1% | 7.7% |
NS/Lij HS Southside Hospital
4.6 mi away · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Great River
17pages on Great River
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
4 within 15 miles of the center of Great River
Suffolk County Community CollegeCommunity college · Public · Selden10.7 mi$6,630 in-state tuitionFive Towns CollegeUniversity or college · Private for-profit · Dix Hills12.6 mi$30,250 tuitionStony Brook UniversityUniversity or college · Public · Stony Brook14 mi$10,931 in-state tuition
About 8 of every 100 Great River residents are enrolled in college, about the same as New York.
By the sea
Great River lives by the ocean
Coastal flooding makes up 10% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
10%of expected storm damage is coastal flooding
97thpercentile for coastal flood risk nationally
22paid flood-insurance claims since 1983
81stpercentile for hurricane risk
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
About Great River
Hamlet and census-designated place in New York, United States
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) (55 mi driving) 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. Great River's name is a translation of "Connetquot," an Algonquian word for "Great River." Prior to the 1900s Great River was primarily home to wealthy families on mansion estates. The population was 2,005 at the time of the 2020 census. Great River's buildings include a New York City–style steak house in a turn of the century (20th) Public house, a delicatessen, a rural delivery post offic…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 5.2 sq mi
- Elevation
- 13 ft
- ZIP code
- 11739
Great River’s neighbors
5 towns share a border with Great River.
IslipEast IslipBrookhavenOakdaleNorth Great RiverGreat River
How the neighbors grade
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great River | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Islip | #178 | A− | D− | — | A− | A− |
| East Islip | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Brookhaven | #295 | B | D− | — | B | A− |
| Oakdale | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| North Great River | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Islip and Brookhaven report no FBI crime data of their own. Great River, East Islip, Oakdale and North Great River aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Great River with a neighbor →
Questions about Great River
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Great River, NY a good place to live?
We don’t grade Great River yet; the figures below are still real.
What is Great River, NY known for?
2 notable people were born here, including Tim Melia and Bronson M. Cutting.