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History · Water Mill

Water Mill’s post office opened in 1866, and 3 of its places are on the National Register

Most of Water Mill was built recently: 10% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1995. Below: 3 old photos and papers and maps from 1903 on.

1866first post office
3on the National Register
10%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Water Mill’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Water Mill began

When was Water Mill founded?

1866

The Water Mill post office opened in 1866, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 2,506160 years
Founding year: the first Water Mill post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Water Mill’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19033 editions of the USGS map, 1903 to 1956. Watch Water Mill change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Water Mill’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Water Mill’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPart of Town of Southampton: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Water Mill on the map, 1903 to 1956

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

Water Mill on the 1903 USGS mapWater Mill on the 1946 USGS mapWater Mill on the 1956 USGS map1903Sag Harbor 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 Water Mill.

The story

How Water Mill came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Water Mill.

Read it all →

In 1644, England gave Edward Howell 40 acres (16 ha) of land near the new settlement of Southampton to build a mill for settlers to grind their grain into meal. It became a landmark, and people began referring to other settlements that popped up as "east or west of the watermill." By the 1800s, the area was known as Water Mills and was later changed to Water Mill. Howell's Water Mill was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. Today, the hamlet boasts its status as the only settlement on the South Fork of Long Island with both a functioning watermill and windmill. Both the Watermill (ref#83004175) and the James Corwith gristmill (ref#78001919) are landmarked in the NRHP. Today Water Mill is a resort community of beautiful beaches, farms and mega mansions. Celebrities and public figures such as Richard Gere, Jennifer Lopez, Matt Lauer, Senator Frank Lautenberg, Stev…

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Water Mill, 1873 to 1915

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1873In the archiveSouthampton
  3. 20th century
  4. 1902In the archiveSuffolk County, V. 1, Single Plate No. 25 (Map bounded by Part of Watermill, Part of Brid…
  5. 1903On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1915In the archivePart of Town of Southampton
By decade

Water Mill, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s–1910s3 items
Southampton1873SouthamptonMapSuffolk County, V. 1, Single Plate No. 25 (Map bounded by Part of Watermill, Part of Bridge Hampton)1902Suffolk County, V. 1, Single Plate No. 25 (Map bounde…MapPart of Town of Southampton1915Part of Town of Southampton
1920s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today3 recent
Fog rolling over the hills2009Fog rolling over the hills30 MPH in town200930 MPH in townWatermill-post2006Watermill-post
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Part of Town of Southampton
Retake this viewPart of Town of Southampton, 1915

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Water Mill’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

3 historic places in Water Mill

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 Water Mill

Nobody well known was born in Water Mill 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.

Bridgehampton4 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townNorth Sea1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSouthampton9 historic placesA+

Questions about Water Mill’s history

What year was Water Mill founded?

The Water Mill post office opened in 1866, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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.