Who really knows why it all happened? Probably no one, not even those who were there. At least that’s how the story of the Stonewall riots continues to be told. But something was in the air that sweltering night at … Full Story
The Miraculous Rescue of the “U.S.S. Northern Pacific”
By Thomas McGann No one knows how many wrecks have occurred off Fire Island’s shores, some horrific, some forgotten to history, but the most miraculous rescue must be that of the “U.S.S. Northern Pacific,” which ran aground on New Year’s … Full Story
O Whitman! My Whitman!
By Thomas McGann Happy birthday, Walt Whitman, born 200 years ago, May 31, 1819. It is of thee we sing! We celebrate your birth! “Starting from fish-shape Paumanok, where [you were] born, well-begotten, and rais’d by a perfect mother…isle of … Full Story
The Hurricane of ’38
Personal Stories from Fire Island By Thomas McGann The hurricane hit Fire Island around 2:30 p.m. The eye was about 50 miles wide, the storm itself about 500 miles across. High tide was even higher than usual because of the … Full Story
Wolcott Gibbs: F.I. mellows a curmudgeon
History By Thomas McGann “Backward ran sentences until reeled the mind,” reads Wolcott Gibbs’ parody of Time magazine, an article that is still highly touted, so much so that it tends to obscure much of what else he wrote, and … Full Story
The Fascinating History of Lighthouses
From Pharos to Fire Island By Thomas McGann On Aug. 7, we will celebrate National Lighthouse Day, and countdown to the 30th anniversary in which Congress passed this resolution. It was on Aug. 7, 1789, that the Bureau of Lighthouses … Full Story
Lambda Legal: Protecting LGBT rights for 45 Years
By Thomas McGann Lambda Legal is a civil rights organization that specializes in lesbian, bisexual, gay, and transgender (LBGT) rights, as well as those living with AIDS/HIV. In 1971, Lambda Legal’s founder William J. Thom was sitting around a pool … Full Story
Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell: Von Steuben (1730-1794)
Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben and the American Revolution By Lorna Luniewski This is a name that many may not be familiar with, myself included, but Baron von Steuben is credited with being one of the fathers of the Continental Army, … Full Story
The William Floyd Estate
Gunpowder and Gumption By Thomas McGann This year celebrates the 300th anniversary of the William Floyd Estate, one of the gems of the Fire Island National Seashore. The estate is the ancestral home of William Floyd (1634-1821), one of only … Full Story
History: Rumrunners of Fire Island
By Thomas McGann It started with Prohibition. Thanks to the active political participation of the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), the Anti-Saloon League, and the likes of Carry A. Nation, an uncorseted woman (“bad for the vital organs” she claimed) … Full Story