1938 hurricane damage, Southampton, NY and nearby
From my grandparents’ home movies. We think this is damage from the 1938 hurricane that hit the Hamptons on Long Island, NY. Can anyone identify anything/anywhere in this? Thanks. At 2:04 you see a picture of St. Andrews Dune Church in Southampton. see http://www.smithtownhistorical.org/events/events_2007-10-29/images/st_andrews_dune_church-380×245.jpg
Duration : 0:2:53
wow that was so …
wow that was so interesting to watch~thanks for posting~its almost the 70 year anniversary they say we are do for another one
There was very …
There was very little warning before this storm hit.
This is footage of …
This is footage of the New England Hurricane that happened in September of 1938, a category 3 hurricane that swept the coast and killed 600 people.
I remember that …
I remember that hurricane very well. It uprooted a giant tree on our lawn and left a gaping hole, I was 8 at the time, and it did a ton of damage , closed the Moriches inlet, very scary.
Thanks. Sorry, I …
Thanks. Sorry, I have no ideas other than there must be some of the local government agencies online somewhere. Or maybe a local historical society.
Nice video, thanks …
Nice video, thanks for posting. My grandparents lost their house in this hurricane. I’ve been trying to find out where it was. any idea where to get property records pre 1938 for the Moriches area?
The Bathing Corp …
The Bathing Corp is a beach club. It sits between lake agawam to the north and the atlantic ocean to the south. The ocean broke through just east of the bathing durring the 1938 hurricane. Many cars were washed into the lake. At least 2 people died there when it happened.
Thank you very much …
Thank you very much! What is “The bathing corp.”?
I recognize 2 …
I recognize 2 buildings in 2nd half of clip. The Dune church and The bathing corp. Both on meadow lane in southampton. Both buildings are still there today.
That bridge is NOT …
That bridge is NOT anywhere near Robert Moses. I live in the area and fish both frequently. It is most definately in the Hamptons which is at least 50 minutes from the Robert Moses Causeway. Just an FYI.
.26 Could that be …
.26 Could that be the old Ponquoque Bridge going to Dune Road?
Suffolk County …
Suffolk County Historical Society in Riverhead. Try there. My mother was 8 years old. She remembered it. Water as high as 8 feet.
Hey, thanks a lot. …
Hey, thanks a lot. My Dad was 3. he doesn’t remember and my grandparents are no longer living. I remember my grandfather saying he had a boat and they found it on a farm over a mile away.
indeed – this shows …
indeed – this shows the Village of Southampton — south of Hill St. — there are very clear photos of the beach club and church (which were restored) south of Lake Agawam on Dune Road….
during this storm the Shinnecock inlet was created joining Peconic Bay with the Atlantic Ocean. Wasn’t this hurricane called “Betsy”?
it’s in the …
it’s in the hamptons….must be the bridge at westhampton….I live on captree island and thats not captree in the video…more then likely its ll west hampton beach…they took the brunt of the hurricane of 38
I also forgot to …
I also forgot to mention one thing. He’s also a Science teacher, so he knows all about the past hurricanes. He said that the hurricane wasn’t nearly as bad in CT as it was on LI. he said it broke up a bit once it hit CT, so this video is most likely all from LI.
Interesting. Thanks!
Interesting. Thanks!
Thanks for the help …
Thanks for the help! I’m hoping more of it can be identified as well.
That information I …
That information I just said came from my boyfriend, who lives so close that he claims he can spit and hit the bridge lol. He thinks it’s the drawbridge before the actual Rober Moses bridge; not the actual RM bridge. I think he’s right.
But it’s nonetheless very interesting. Cool to see footage from then and see the damage from the hurricane. Thanks for showing us.
No. I live near …
No. I live near enough. It all looks vaguely familiar. Not that I would recognize it from pictures but I think I may have been over the Robert Moses bridge. (Maybe that steel part was added later… I do see that a second bridge has been added relatively recently…)
It might be a …
It might be a drawbridge to Captree State Park, right before the Robert Moses bridge.
Are you from around Long Island?
Great. Where is …
Great. Where is that bridge on LI, Fire Island? It does look like a WPA era bridge but the only pic I have found of the RM bridge has big steel structure which I don’t see in this movie.
I’m from Long …
I’m from Long Island, and :26 into the video almost looks like the Robert Moses bridge. I’ve been to CT many times, and I don’t remember any sort of bridge looking like that.
Could very well be. …
Could very well be. Thanks!
Believe this is …
Believe this is from the 1937 “Long Island Express” that came racing up from the south and hit Long Island traveling at some 50mph. It had winds of 115mph. After hitting Long Island it hit Connecticut as a Extratropical feature. Fianlly it moved into Canada.