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History · Northwest Harbor

11% of Northwest Harbor’s homes were built before 1940

3 places in town are on the National Register. Below: maps from 1903 on.

3on the National Register
11%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory

What stands out about Northwest Harbor’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Northwest Harbor are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19034 editions of the USGS map, 1903 to 1956. Watch Northwest Harbor change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Northwest Harbor’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Northwest Harbor’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Northwest Harbor on the map, 1903 to 1956

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Northwest Harbor. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Northwest Harbor on the 1903 USGS mapNorthwest Harbor on the 1921 USGS mapNorthwest Harbor on the 1944 USGS mapNorthwest Harbor on the 1956 USGS map1903Gardiners Island sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Northwest Harbor.

The story

How Northwest Harbor came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Northwest Harbor.

Read it all →

During the American Revolution it was the site of two conflicts, including the Meigs Raid, in which Americans burned Sag Harbor and captured 90 British soldiers, and an incident in which Isaac Van Scoy killed a British soldier with a pitchfork. The British were to conduct another raid during the War of 1812.

During the Great Hurricane of 1938, sand all but enclosed the harbor at its mouth at the Cedar Point Lighthouse, leaving only a narrow channel into Gardiners Bay.

In January 2007, Northwest Landing made national news in efforts to save several common dolphins that had swum up the creek.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Northwest Harbor, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Northwest Rd. at Van Scoy Homestead 20230806 1157582023Northwest Rd. at Van Scoy Homestead 20230806 115758Elaine DeKooning Historic marker2023Elaine DeKooning Historic markerDeKooningCat2023DeKooningCatDeKooning Studio 20230806 1215052023DeKooning Studio 20230806 121505Three Mile Harbor NY June 20212021Three Mile Harbor NY June 2021Northwest-dolphin2007Northwest-dolphin
On the National Register

3 historic places in Northwest Harbor

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
each building in a district counts

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

Famous people close to Northwest Harbor

Nobody well known was born in Northwest Harbor itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Jacqueline Kennedy OnassisFirst Lady of the United States from 1961 to 19… · b. 1929
Howard DeanAmerican politician · b. 1948
Mary L. CleaveAmerican engineer and NASA astronaut · b. 1947
George HuntingtonAmerican physician (1850–1916); discoverer of H… · b. 1850
Catharine BeecherUnited States educator · b. 1800
Paul AnnaconeAmerican tennis player and coach · b. 1963
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

East Hampton North1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSprings2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWainscott2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSag Harbor5 historic placesA+East Hampton33 historic placesAShelter Island10 historic placesASouthampton37 historic placesA

Questions about Northwest Harbor’s history

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.