Cherry Grove | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Nickname: The Grove | |
  Cherry Grove Location within the state of New York Show map of New York Cherry Grove Cherry Grove (the United States) Show map of the United States | |
| Coordinates:40°39′38″N73°5′17″W / 40.66056°N 73.08806°W /40.66056; -73.08806 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New York |
| County | Suffolk |
| Town | Brookhaven |
| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (Eastern Time Zone) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 |
| ZIP Code | 11782 |
| Area codes | 631, 934 |
| GNIS feature ID | 946512[1] |
Cherry Grove (often referred to locally asthe Grove) is ahamlet in theTown of Brookhaven,Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is located onFire Island, abarrier island separated from the southern side ofLong Island by theGreat South Bay. The hamlet has approximately 300 houses on 41 acres (17 ha), a summer seasonal population of 2,000 and a year-round population of 15.[2]
Cherry Grove, along with nearbyFire Island Pines, is considered one of the most popular lesbian, gay,bisexual, andtransgender (LGBT)–acceptingresort communities in the United States.[2]
Cherry Grove dates its modern history to the 1868 purchase by Archer and Elizabeth Perkinson. They bought the land between Lone Hill (now Fire Island Pines) and the Cherry Grove Hotel from the ocean to the bay for 25 cents per acre and named the area for theblack-cherry trees in the area.[3] The Perkinsons opened a hotel in 1880. According to local legendOscar Wilde stayed at the Perkinson Hotel.[4]
In 1921, the Perkinson family sold all the land east of Duryea Walk to Lone Hill, and then divided what was left into 109 building lots. A lot 50 × 80 feet (24 m) could be purchased for $250 or less, and ocean-front lots cost no more than a dollar a front foot. Buildings from the newly deactivatedCamp Upton inYaphank, were ported over to form the core of the new colony. A post office was established in 1922 at the site of where "Tides" (formerly "The Monster") is today; the firstboardwalks were built in 1929. In 1930, Duffy's Hotel replaced the original hotel and was the only place with electricity and a phone.
The1938 Long Island Express Hurricane destroyed much of Cherry Grove and discouraged mainlanders from coming. In their stead, the gay community that already frequented the island settled there moving from Ocean Beach, with figures such asAntoine de Paris andW. H. Auden leading the way.[5]
In the 1950s, Cherry Grove was already known as a "safe haven" one of three that includedProvincetown, Massachusetts, andKey West, where they "could only fleetingly enjoy a carefree, 24-hour-a-day queer life by running off to a handful of destinations comfortably removed from a homophobic America."[6] Only 60 miles from New York City, it was isolated because of its location off Long Island that required access by a ferry or, at the time,seaplane.[6] The gay aura of the town supposedly arose whenChristopher Isherwood andW. H. Auden arrived dressed asDionysus andGanymede, carried aloft on a gildedlitter by a group of singing followers.[7]
Truman Capote stayed at the Carrington House, just east of Cherry Grove, where in 1957, he completed his groundbreaking novella,Breakfast at Tiffany's.[8]
The hamlet's major hotel and lounge in the 1950s was Duffy's, which burned on September 27, 1956, and was replaced by the Ice Palace Hotel.[9] John Eberhardt, a developer who died in 2014, was credited for building the Belvedere Hotel and many other properties in the hamlet, from 1956 to the 1970s.[10][11]
In early May 1959,James Baldwin visited Cherry Grove, staying in the Grove Hotel, where he wrote part of his intersectionalNovel,Another Country.[8]
While the Grove has its charms, several residents in 2005 expressed concerns about the lack of any services and population in the winter, the high cost of food and beverages, some "disrespectful visitors who come to party ... 'Day trippers'" (especially on the 4th of July), over-regulation ofzoning by the town of Brookhaven, and a large population of voracious deer who eat up bothbeach grass and private gardens.[2] A new generation of entertainers and socialites call Cherry Grove their summer home, includingHedda Lettuce,Michael Musto,Panzi, andWanda Sykes and her wife and children.[12][13]
In 2013, theCherry Grove Community House and Theatre was listed on theNational Register of Historic Places, one of only a few sites so far listed for their role in American LGBT history.[14]
A "pop-up"urgent care center opened in 2014, which is part ofNorthwell Health; agolf cart foremergency medical services was also purchased for the Grove, for the new 24/7paramedic services.[15][16] Local residents "raised about $90,000 from donors to hire locally based paramedics, which have responded to more than 30 calls since May as of mid-August and will remain staffed through the end of September, when bustling crowds thin out at the beach."[16]
In the early morning hours of March 27, 2015, an epic fire of historic proportions "destroyed" the Grove Hotel, Holly House, and two residential homes nearby; 23 fire companies responded from Fire Island and the south shore of Long Island and three firefighters were injured.[17] The fire "engulfed" the surrounding properties, but the fire departments were able to put out the blaze, in this, "one of the most popular LGBTQ destinations."[18] According to its social media accounts, the Ice Palace, a famous nightclub, "had negligible damage", but was not destroyed along with the hotel. The hotel has since been rebuilt.
The entire community has a single seasonal post office, on Bayview Walk near the main dock, open from aboutMay 1 toOctober 12, which is a popular place to congregate. Full services, such asmoney orders, are available at theSayville, New York, post office, reachable from the ferry.[19] TheZIP Code is 11782.
Despite the small size of the hamlet, at about 41 acres, the community is further divided into three or four neighborhoods, from west to east:
Cherry Grove is accessible via two major walks (Bayview and Lewis), which are generally parallel to the beach, and sixteen minor walks (Ivy, Sumner, Maryland, Aeon, Gerard, Greene, Duryea, Doctors, Main, Ocean, Holly, Surf, Beach, Sea, East, and West), which are generally perpendicular to the beach. South Walk (not shown in the map at right) is parallel to the beach and extends between Surf and Beach Walks.[citation needed]
The Community House, located near the intersection of Holly and Bayview Walks, provides a wide variety of public services to the Grove. Generally speaking, gay couples and activities are the norm. In 2013, theCherry Grove Community House and Theatre was named to the National Register of Historic Places for "the enormous role it played in shaping what gradually evolved into America's First Gay and Lesbian Town."[20][21]
The main outdoor attraction is the beach and the surrounding protected portions of theFire Island National Seashore.[22] Clothing-optional sunbathing is common at the beach.[23] The hamlet's easternmost dunes have been nicknamed the "Meat Rack".[24][25] The legal name of that area is the Carrington Tract, where Truman Capote famously completedBreakfast at Tiffany's.[8]
There are at least six restaurants that operate within Cherry Grove, varying from pizza and breakfast to seafood and fine-dining. Also, there are at least four entertainment venues hosting plays, art shows, dancing, underwear parties,drag shows, and various community events.
As of 2005, there were five bars,[2] but one closed during the Great Recession of the late 2000s.
Civic activities in the Grove include charity events and an Awards Night, during which votes are taken and titles bestowed upon residents and local businesses. The Arts Project of Cherry Grove hosts the Homecoming Queen show, variety and drag shows, and a gala dinner and dance in late September.[citation needed]
There is a sense of civic virtue in The Grove; people volunteer at CGFD, the Cherry Grove Community Association, on environmental projects, and even painting the edges of the boardwalks.[2]
A big event on the Cherry Grove social calendar is theFourth of July weekend "Invasion of the Pines",[24] which dates back toJuly 4, 1976, when a resident of the Grove showed up wearing drag in Fire Island Pines and was refused service. In the 1970s, the Pines was a more-conservative, more-heterosexual community than the Grove.
There are two annualdrag show contests in Cherry Grove: theHomecoming Queen show overMemorial Day weekend, and theMiss Fire Island the longest running contest the weekend of, or after, Labor Day.
The ecosystem of Cherry Grove is primarilypine barrens; however, there are severalmicroclines andecological niches. Raccoons, foxes, squirrels, and many species of birds can be seen throughout the summer.[citation needed]
Deer are common and quite tame on Fire Island. Some residents consider deer to be a nuisance, while others enjoy seeing wildlife close to their summer homes.[2]
Cherry Grove is named for the manywild cherry trees that bloom each June in the area.[citation needed]
Cherry Grove is only accessible by water with most residents and visitors using a passenger ferry or private water taxi. A small marina is also available. There are no private vehicles in this part of Fire Island, although police and service vehicles are seen on the beach from time to time. The Grove has no paved roads and the cottages and beach are only accessible using a series of wooden boardwalks.[2]
Cherry Grove can be accessed via the Sayville Ferry Service departing fromSayville, New York, across the Great South Bay.[26]
TheLong Island Rail Road connects Sayville to New York City. Passengers connecting between theSayville station and the Sayville Ferry service can pay for a shuttle van or taxi ride, or may walk or ride their bicycle the mile and a half distance. People driving cars may park in large, gravel parking lots across the street from the ferry dock.[citation needed]
Visitors arriving by car may park at theRobert Moses State Park "Field Five" parking lot. After reaching the Fire Island Lighthouse, the Fire Island Water Taxi will ferry paying customers to the Grove. A water taxi provides short-distance transportation for those moving from place to place along the coast of Fire Island. The fare and schedule for the taxi service varies by season.
The Cherry Grove Fire Department (CGFD) is an all-volunteer department[2] that has anInsurance Services Office (ISO) class 3 rating. Adjacent each of the community's 18 fire hydrants are hose sheds containing firefighting hose, hydrant adapters, and appliances that would be needed by the members to suppress a fire; this is due to the unique nature of Cherry Grove. There are no roads, only 6-foot wide boardwalks that change with the island's topography, and a typical fire engine would exceed the boardwalk's weight rating. If a fire or emergency is spotted, one should call 911. A fire siren is activated, which along with pagers, alerts the members to respond.
CGFD is a Basic Life Support First Response (BLSFR) agency, and as such has New York state certified emergency medical technicians that operate in conjunction with Cherry Grove EMS[27] and the Suffolk County Police Department's marine bureau officers, to mitigate medical emergencies and patient transport. CGFD receives assistance from both neighboring Fire Island fire departments as well as mainland departments via ferry or fire boat (such as Sayville Fire Department) in case of large fires, as happened in March 2015 when a fire destroyed several commercial properties in the business district.[17]
Northwell Health operates two urgent care facilities on Fire Island (one in Cherry Grove and the other in nearbyOcean Beach). These centers operate during the summer from Memorial Day through Labor Day, and are open for walk-in patient visits seven days a week from 9 to 11 a.m. and 4 to 6 pm. If patients require medical treatment outside of those hours, the Immediate Care Center's physician can be reached on call by contacting local police.[citation needed]
Good Samaritan Hospital, South Shore University Hospital, and Long Island Community Hospital are located across the Great South Bay from Fire Island in the Long Island hamlets ofWest Islip,Bay Shore, andEast Patchogue, respectively. A heliport for medevac helicopter use is adjacent to Good Samaritan Hospital. Specially equipped boats provided by theSuffolk County Police Department Marine Bureau docked at the various communities on Fire Island provide emergency transportation to individuals in need of dire medical care. In many cases, Long Island based ambulances will meet the boats once they cross the Bay (roughly 4.5 miles) and then drive individuals the short distance to one of the three hospitals. Also, one emergency access road connects Long Island (West Islip) to Fire Island (Kismet). However, the road ends there and does not extend the full length of the island into the other communities.[citation needed]
| Preceded by | Beaches ofFire Island | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
