Bridgehampton

Woodrow Wilson Led Parade of Notables

Beginnings: Bridgehampton records its start in 1656 when Josiah Stanborough, an original settler of Southampton, built a house in Sagg, today known as Sagaponack. Soon after the first settlers moved in, a bridge was erected over Sagg Pond, joining Sagg and Mecox to its west. They named the lane that crossed the small causeway Bridge Street, which likely inspired the hamlet's future name: Bridge Hampton (later bridged itself to form one word). Most of the founding families were in some way connected to the whaling industry, the East End's most profitable pursuit in colonial times. Once Sag Harbor was settled about 1730, whaling fell off. But the soil in Bridgehampton was rich enough for farming to take over.

The Revolution: Most Bridgehampton families rallied to the Patriot cause. Capt. John Hulbert of Bridgehampton raised a company of volunteer militia in 1775 and marched his men to Montauk to prevent a foray by a British fleet. Later the company was ordered to upstate Ticonderoga to take charge of British prisoners. The community suffered under the British occupation starting in 1776, and many fled to Connecticut.

Turning Point: Bridgehampton was known as the summer place to be and be seen as early as the late 1800s. Woodrow Wilson was there in 1898, vacationing with his family at the old Topping boarding house, then on Main Street in Sagaponack. In 1916, Mary Pickford filmed a movie, ``Huldah of Holland,'' in a mock Dutch village with the Hayground windmill being used as a backdrop. Today, Peter Jennings and other modern-day celebrities have homes in Bridgehampton.

Hometown Hero: He once described himself as ``just a potato farmer from Long Island who had some ability.'' But to baseball fans, Carl Yastrzemski was much more than that. With 452 career home runs for the Boston Red Sox before his retirement in 1983, he was inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame in 1989.