Preservationist Tour Guide: A Weekend on the East End
Earlier this fall, members of the League’s leadership giving group, the Excelsior Society, enjoyed a weekend full of behind-the-scenes tours on Long Island’s East End. And while our Excelsior Society members were treated to several exclusive tours and talks not typically available to the general public (a benefit of membership!), we thought we would share an abbreviated version of our trip itinerary for anyone who wanted to plan their own East End adventure. And if you are thinking you’d like to join us for an exclusive tour to explore another corner of NYS, you are in luck. The Excelsior Society is busy planning a weekend in Buffalo for 2025 — stay tuned for details.
Friday
Start your day early and head to the East End Seaport Museum & Marine Foundation in Greenport to learn about the rich maritime history of Long Island. After touring the museum, take a stroll through Greenport and find a place for lunch — there are lots of shops and restaurants in this charming village. From here, head to the ferry station to catch the North Ferry to Shelter Island.
The Main House at Sylvester Manor Educational Farm. The League has a long history of supporting Sylvester Manor, including awarding NYSCA-funded Preserve New York Grants in 2015, 2016, and 2018, and a Technical Assistance Grant in 2022.
Your destination on Shelter Island: Sylvester Manor Educational Farm. Sylvester Manor is considered the most intact example of a northern plantation and was settled in 1652 by sugar merchant Nathaniel Sylvester. Held by descendants of Sylvester for 362 years, the Manor retains a number of artifacts and archives that tell the story of the site. In recent years, the Sylvester Manor team has done great work to reinterpret the site, telling a fuller story of its history and all the people who once called this place home, not just the European colonists for whom the house is named — from the displaced indigenous population (the farm was founded on the ancestral lands of the Manhansett People) to the enslaved Africans who worked the land. Check their website to see if they are offering tours of the main house and make sure to spend some time exploring the grounds as well.
From here you’ll catch the South Ferry from Shelter Island to Sag Harbor and make your way to your hotel for the weekend. Our crew used the Southampton Inn as our homebase. Located in the heart of historic Southampton Village, just steps from Main Street, the Southampton Inn is classic, unassuming, and utterly charming. The Inn offers the personal attention of a bed & breakfast with the services of a hotel.
Saturday
Halsey House and garden in Southampton, photo by Jeff Heatly. The League has played a role in this site’s continued stewardship with a 2022 NYSCA-funded Preserve New York grant, which supported the creation of an updated Building Condition Report.
Spend your Saturday exploring the rich artistic history of the Hamptons. First, head out to the Springs section of East Hampton to visit both the Pollock-Krasner House & Study Center and Elaine De Kooning House. Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner were at the forefront of the Abstract Expressionist art movement. Their home is now a museum that contains all the furnishings and artifacts that were in the house at the time of Krasner’s death in 1984, some of which were there during Pollock’s lifetime as well, plus rotating exhibitions of work by historical and contemporary artists alike, set in dialogue with the intimate environment of the home. Like Pollock and Krasner, Elaine de Kooning was also among the leading Abstract Expressionist painters of her time. She lived in this East Hampton home for 14 years, beginning in 1975. Since 2011, the Elaine de Kooning House has hosted events, exhibitions, and informal artist residencies. Open to the public on a seasonal basis from May through October and by reservation only, be sure to reach out to plan your visit!
From here, head to LongHouse Reserve, a 16-acre integrated environment created by artist, collector, and world-renowned textile designer and weaver Jack Lenor Larsen. The sculpture garden, featuring more than 60 outdoor works, encourages exploration and contemplation for new and repeat visitors alike. The organization has plans to expand their offerings by activating Larsen’s home (a modernist structure based on the Shinto Shrine at Ise) — stay tuned!
Head into the heart of East Hampton to grab some lunch and then plan to visit The Thomas & Mary Nimmo Moran Studio. Run by the East Hampton Historical Society, the National Historic Landmark Moran Studio was built in 1884 in the Queen Anne style. Moran’s artist’s studio marked the beginning of the village as an artist’s colony.
As you head back to Southampton, make one final stop for the day at the Southampton History Museum’s ca. 1683 Halsey House and Garden. The grounds are always open to the public from dawn to dusk, but tours of the home are available by appointment only.
Sunday
After breakfast, make your first stop the Southampton African American Museum (SAAM). The museum is housed in a repurposed barber shop that had long been a gathering place for the local Black community. That legacy is preserved alongside their contemporary exhibits celebrating and promoting African American culture.
From there, head to Sag Harbor and visit the Eastville Community Historical Society. Eastville is one of the earliest known multicultural working class communities — the Historical Society preserves that history. The museum is open by appointment only, but they also have freely available self-guided walking tours for you to explore on your own schedule.
Before you end your Hamptons weekend, spend a little time walking around Sag Harbor (maybe use one of the aforementioned walking tours?). There are many cute shops and restaurants, and we would be remiss if we didn’t encourage a stop into at least one of the town’s two bookshops. Visit Sag Harbor Books or Canio’s Books (or both!) and maybe pick something up by Colson Whitehead, whose book Sag Harbor is a semi-autobiographical coming of age story that takes place in Sag Harbor’s SANS community — the historically Black vacation community where Whitehead himself spent his summers.