Simplicity, at Its Finest

It must have been the most obvious choice, the most practical option, the simplest one. Bridgehampton's name comes from the bridge that connected Sagaponack with Mecox (which was a settlement to the West of Sagaponack). The town of Southampton (Bridgehampton is a hamlet in Southampton) commissioned Ezekial Sandford to build a bridge over Sagg Pond in 1686. The bridge was named Sagg Bridge because it went over Sagg Pond. Bridge Street was the name of the street that crossed the bridge (for obvious reasons) and of course led to the original name of Bridge Hampton. Truly beautiful simplicity.

That beautiful simplicity still remains in Bridgehampton today. An example of that is the Hampton Classic, which is an annual horse show that takes place in Bridgehampton at the end of each summer. Bridgehampton is also home to Bridge Gardens and the Southfork Natural History Museum and Nature Center.

History in Bridgehampton isn't just limited to the Museum. The Beebe Windmill is designated a National Historic Landmark. It was brought to its current location (the corner of Ocean Road and Hildreth Avenue) in 1837. The Beebe Windmill was built in Sag Harbor in 1820 and is one of just eleven remaining windmills that were built on eastern Long Island between 1795 and 1820.

Bridgehampton is not just the home of historical landmarks. It is also the home of people who have made history. The Bridgehampton High School boys' basketball team won the New York State small school championship numerous times in the '70's, '80's, and '90's. Bridgehampton native Carl Yastrzemski held the basketball scoring record for thirty years and went on to become a Hall of Fame baseball player for the Boston Red Sox. In the simplest of terms he was one of the finest athletes of his day, which is truly appropriate for someone from Bridgehampton.