Gardiners Bay is a small arm of the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

, approximately 10 mi (16 km) long and 8 mi (13 km) wide in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

between the two flukelike peninsulas at the eastern end of

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

. It is bounded on its eastern end, where it connects to

Block Island Sound Block Island Sound is a marine sound in the open Atlantic Ocean, approximately wide, separating Block Island from the coast of mainland Rhode Island. On the west, it extends to Montauk Point on the eastern tip of Long Island, as well as P ...

, by

Gardiners Island Gardiner's Island is a small island in the Town of East Hampton (town), New York, East Hampton, New York (state), New York, in Eastern Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk County. It is located in Gardiners Bay, Gardiner's Bay between the two penins ...

and Promised Land. Adjoining harbors include Three Mile Harbor, Clearwater beach, Acabonack Harbor, and Lazy Point's Napeague harbor. Native fish include; Striped Bass, Bluefish, Fluke, Yellowtail, flounder, blackfish, weakfish, Porgy, sea Robbin, and sea skate. The area is fed by the nearby estuaries of Three mile Harbor, Acabonack Creek, and Napeague, which produce ideal environments for shellfish and crustaceans. Blue claw crab, oysters, and hard shell clams, scallops, and conch are abundant throughout these areas. It is bounded on the western end by Shelter Island. It connects by two channels at the north and south end of Shelter Island to

Great Peconic Bay The Peconic Bay is the parent name for two bays (Great Peconic Bay and Little Peconic Bay) between the North Fork and South Fork of Long Island in Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is separated from Gardiners Bay by Shelter Islan ...

. During the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

and the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

, the bay was controlled by the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

, who used Gardiners Island to store provisions. The British fleet assembled in Cherry Harbor in the bay before sailing to

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Ea ...

to attack

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

and burn the

United States Capitol The United States Capitol, often called the Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the Seat of government, seat of the United States Congress, the United States Congress, legislative branch of the Federal government of the United States, federal g ...

. Gardiners Bay is part of the Peconic Estuary and received the designation as an Estuary of National Significance from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1993.

Pop culture references

Gardiners Bay is mentioned in the song '

The Downeaster "Alexa" "The Downeaster 'Alexa'" is a song by Billy Joel from his eleventh studio album '' Storm Front'' (1989), released as the album's fourth single. It peaked at No. 57 in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and was included on Joel's '' Greatest Hits Vol. 3'' ...

' by Billy Joel.

References

External links

Nautical chart of Gardiners Bay
Bays of New York (state) East Hampton (town), New York Southold, New York Shelter Island (town), New York Bays of Suffolk County, New York {{SuffolkCountyNY-geo-stub