Township Of Shelter Island
Town of Shelter Island Communities
About The Town of Shelter Island…
Shelter Island is a township and island safely tucked between the two tines on the East End of Long Island, New York, the North and South Forks in Suffolk County. It was aptly named “Manhansack-aha-quash-awamock,” meaning “island protected by islands,” by its earliest known inhabitants, the indigenous Manhanset Indians, for its geographic placement.
The Town is separated from the rest of Suffolk County and surrounded by the waters of the Shelter Island Sound except its eastern shores, which are overlapped by the waters of Gardiners Bay. It is composed of many creeks and inlets, such as the West Neck Harbor in the southwest.
Approximately 3 hours northeast of New York City, Shelter Island is reachable only via car ferry, a ride of about 10 minutes from the village of Greenport in the Town of Southold on the North Fork and less than five minutes from the village of Sag Harbor in the Hamptons on the South Fork.
The Town comprises the incorporated village of Dering Harbor and the hamlets and census-designated places of Shelter Island and Shelter Island Heights. A third of the island is owned by the Nature Conservancy and occupied by a wild nature park called the Mashomack Nature Preserve. Said to be a mellower and less expensive version of the Hamptons, the Town maintains a bucolic, laid-back vibe with a relatively small population that gets multiplied five times its size every summer.
Shelter Island’s housing inventory offers different styles of single-family homes, plenty of which are waterfront houses with private boat docks and impressive water views of the beautiful Sound or bay. It also has a wealth of 4-bedroom homes and larger luxury properties with up to eight or more bedrooms.
The Town’s dwellings may include first-floor bedrooms, private pools and legal accessory apartments or provision for one, among other features and amenities. There are also vacant lots, rental properties and new constructions, and certain districts offer historic homes.
Shelter Island is blessed with rich natural environments, a wide variety of marine, plant and other wildlife species, picturesque views all around and absolute freedom from daily traffic jams. Islanders enjoy the public beaches, marinas, golf courses and tennis courts, among other Town facilities and offerings.
Communities in The Town of Shelter Island