The new Longwood High School being built in Middle Island
Central School District 12, located on a 51-acre tract of
land donated for the purpose by Elbert C. Smith. He is a
direct descendant of Col. William Smith, and inherited the
historic Longwood estate from Miss Helen Tangier Smith, who
died in 1955. Mr. and Mrs. Smith and their family of five
children came here from California a few years ago and
occupy the ancestral manor house which was built about 1790.
The new junior-senior high school is located on a part of
the Manor of St. George, which was purchased from the
Indians in 1691 by Col. William Smith, who in 1693 was
granted a patent for it by King William and Queen Mary of
England, through their agent, Gov. Fletcher of New York.
The original tract of land was an enormous one and
consisted of several thousands of acres. This was bounded on
the north by Middle Country Road through Middle Island,
west by the Conneticut River (now called Carman's River),
and east by the Mastic River or Forge River. On the south it
went to the ocean and included the south bay and islands in
it.
Col. William was an important man in the early life of this
part of Long Island. He was born in 1654 at Newton, England,
Tradition states that his mother was a maid-of-honor in
attendance upon the English Queen, and as such young William
was made a page in the royal household. He made such an
impression on King Charles, II, that when he became 20 years
of age the king commissioned him Mayor of the Royal City of
Tangier, in Africa, with the rank of colonel. After 13 years
of service there, Col. Smith with his wife, Martha of
Putney, England, and their three children went back to
England. Three years later the family left for America,
arriving at the colony of New York August 6, 1686. His eye
fell on Little Neck, (Strong's Neck) in Setauket, which he
purchased, and located his home there.
It is interesting to note that the patent given by King
William and Queen Mary for the Manor of St. George, through
Gov. Fletcher, contained in part the following; "It is our
Royal Will and pleasure that the said Lordship and Mannour
shall be called the Lordshipp and Mannour of St. George's."
The King and Queen go on to say; "Know yee that wee give and
grant unto the said Coll. William Smith, full power and
authority, at all tymes hereafter, in the Lordshipp and
Mannour."
So Col. Smith, the Lord of the Manor had the supposedly
extinct feudal right of control over the persons who lived
on his property. He dispensed the justice, made the laws,
and was in fact as well as name the Lord of the Manor, and
was not governed by the laws of of Brookhaven Town. It was
not until 1789 that his estate was taken into the town of
Brookhaven by an act of the State Legislature.
Though Col. Smith was busy in those years overseeing his
large estate, he was also engaged in the off shore whaling
fishery through his native Indian employes. He was active in
the government of the colony, and was appointed in 1691 to
one of the judgeships of the Supreme Court, and the next
year was made chief justice. In Setauket he was looked upon
with a great deal of respect and esteem. He was a loyal
member of the old Town Church, where "rude actions," had
taken place for the seats of honor in the meeting house, and
it was ordered that everyone should be seated according to
the prescribed plan. The president and clerk of the town
trustees were to sit under the high pulpit, and the trustees
in front. The justices and all who paid 40 shillings or more
to the minister's salary were to sit at the table up front,
and here it was that Col. William and his wife sat. It was a
great distinction for her, for the rule stated that "noe
wimmen are permitted to sit there, except Coll. Smith's Lady
nor any wimmen Kinde." "Lady Martha," as she was known was
showm great deference, and after the death of her
distinguished husband, the congregation remained standing on
Sunday mornings as she withdrew from the meeting house, out
of respect for her.