The Greater Sayville Chamber of Commerce 631.567.5257 • greatersayvillechamber.com
Long Island Maritime Museum 631.HISTORY • limaritime.org
Sayville Historical Society 631.563.0186
Long Island Maritime Museum
41 River Road, Sayville, NY 11782 631.589.0810 • sayvilleferry.com Service to: Cherry Grove, Fire Island Pines, Sunken Forest & Water Island
Meadowcraft
Loughlin Vineyards
Atlantic Wind Symphony
The Common Ground at Rotary Park Keep Islip Clean
Sayville Historical Society Sayville Kiwanis Club |
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The earliest Native American inhabitants of Sayville were the Secatogue tribe of the Algonquian Nation.
Sayville was founded by John Edwards (b. 1738, East Hampton, New York). He built his home, the first in Sayville, in 1761, located at what is now the northwest corner of Foster Ave. and Edwards St. The house was destroyed by fire in March, 1913. Another man, John Greene, settled what's now known as West Sayville in 1767.
The community had no formal name until 1838 when residents gathered to choose a formal name. 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 "Say," and "Sayville" became the name he sent to Washington. After the error was discovered, the town sent a letter of protest to Washington; however, the Postmaster General responded that the town's name should stay "Sayville," as there were many Seavilles in the world but no Sayvilles. As a result, the name stuck. Incidentally, in some very old Bibles, the town name is also spelled "Saville."
Sayville became important for its timber, oysters, and beginning in 1868 when the South Side Rail Road arrived, tourism. Sayville is the embarkation point for ferries to the Fire Island communities of Cherry Grove, Fire Island Pines and Sailors Haven, popular vacation communities for New Yorkers and Long Islanders. The Sayville station of the Long Island Rail Road connects with the ferries via taxi and van services, and also serves commuters to New York City. In 1912 a German Telefunken wireless transmitter was built in 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. 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 encrypted messages were not sent. The station was seized by the government outright after war was declared in 1917. President Woodrow Wilson sent a contingent of Marines to take the wireless station, thus the first hostile action taken by the United States against Germany during World War I was in Sayville.
Source for the History about Sayville:
Wikipedia, Newsday & NY Times