Opening from On This Site - Native Long Island

Conscience Point

Conscience Point is remembered locally as the 1640 landing place of English settlers in Southampton, but the harbor and marsh landscape was already part of Shinnecock homeland. Its history should begin with Shinnecock presence, land use, diplomacy, and survival before turning to the English settlement story preserved by Southampton institutions. Long before English colonists waded ashore at Conscience Point in 1640, the Shinnecock people had thrived for centuries around this highly productive, marsh-bordered harbor. Re-centering the deep Indigenous occupation of famous colonial landing sites challenges the persistent myth that Long Island's history only began with European arrival. Conscience Point is remembered locally as the 1640 landing place of English settlers in Southampton, but the harbor and marsh landscape was already part of Shinnecock homeland. Its...