# Smithtown

Smithtown is a town of 117,000 people (2016) in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York. Smithtown is comprised of the villages and hamlets of Commack (in part, with the Town of Huntington), Fort Salonga (in part, with the Town of Huntington), Hauppauge (in part, with the Town of Islip), Head of the Harbor, Kings Park, Lake Ronkonkoma (in part with the Town of Brookhaven and Town of Islip), Nesconset, Nissequogue, Smithtown, St. James, & Village of the Branch.

## Understand

Smithtown was first settled by Europeans around 1665. Local legend has it that, after rescuing a Native American chief's abducted daughter, Richard Smith was told that the chief would grant title to all of the land Smith could encircle in one day "on a bull". Smith chose to ride the bull on the longest day of the year (summer solstice), to enable him to ride longer "in one day". The land he acquired in this way is said to approximate the current town's location. There is a large anatomically correct statue of Smith's bull, known as Whisper, at the fork of Jericho Turnpike (New York State Route 25) and St. Johnland Road (New York State Route 25A).

## Get in

Smithtown is served by Suffolk County Transit bus routes.

### By car

Interstate 495, the Long Island Expressway, passes through the southwest corner of the town between Exit 52 in Commack and east of Exit 53 in Brentwood.
Northern State Parkway is an east-west route that has interchanges from Exit 43 in Commack on the Huntington–Smithtown Town Line to Veterans Memorial Highway in Hauppauge.
Sagtikos State Parkway is the south-north parkway that enters Smithtown from Brentwood at the interchange with the Long Island Expressway, and terminates at the Northern State Parkway (Exit SM1) in Commack, where it becomes the Sunken Meadow State Parkway.
Sunken Meadow State Parkway is the main south-north parkway within the western part of Smithtown. It begins at Northern State Parkway as a continuation of Sagtikos State Parkway in Commack, winding northeast, until it reaches Sunken Meadow State Park immediately after the interchange with NY 25A.
New York State Route 25A enters the town from Bread and Cheese Hollow Road in Fort Salonga.
New York State Route 25 runs west to east along Jericho Turnpike from Suffolk CR 4.

### By train

Smithtown is served by LIRR via the Port Jefferson Branch, trains runs about once every hour in each direction. A few trains run all the way to Penn Station in Manhattan, but most terminate at Huntington, Hicksville in Nassau County, or Jamaica in Queens.
* Kings Park railway station. (updated Apr 2023)
* 40.856264-73.1992721 Smithtown railway station. (updated Dec 2022)
* Saint James railway station. (updated Apr 2023)

## See

* 40.856667-73.1883331 First Presbyterian Church, 175 East Main St. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, this historic Presbyterian church was built in 1825. (updated Dec 2022)
* 40.843333-73.2261112NOT EXISTING LISTING IMAGE Blydenburgh Park Historic District. The Blydenburgh Historic District located on the north side of Blydenburgh County Park includes the 1798 New Mill, the 1802 Miller's House, the circa 1860 Farm Cottage, outbuildings and the circa 1820 Blydenburgh Farmhouse. This milling center was established in 1798 by members of the Smith & Blydenburgh families of Smithtown. (updated Feb 2024)

## Do

* 40.884449-73.2495731NOT EXISTING LISTING IMAGE Nissequogue River State Park, 799 Saint Johnland Road Kings Park, ☏ +1 631-269-4927. Located on the north shore of Long Island with a variety of habitats including tidal and fresh water wetlands and hardwood forests provide habitat to a variety of shore birds, reptiles and amphibians. (updated Feb 2024)
* 40.851841-73.2248152NOT EXISTING LISTING IMAGE Caleb Smith State Park Preserve (Wyandanch Club Historic District), 581 West Jericho Turnpike, ☏ +1 631-265-1054. (updated Feb 2024)
* 40.905792-73.260333NOT EXISTING LISTING IMAGE Sunken Meadow State Park (Governor Alfred E. Smith State Park), ☏ +1 631-269-4333. Among the most popular picnic parks on Long Island Sunken Meadow offers views of the Long Island Sound with Connecticut in the distance. Swimming, hiking, pick-up sports and golf. (updated Feb 2024)

## Buy

* Smith Haven Mall straddles the border between the Towns of Smithtown and Brookhaven to the east. See Brookhaven (New York)#Buy.

## Eat

* The Kitchen, a trattoria, 532 N Country Rd, St James, ☏ +1 631-584-3518. Tu-Sa 5-9PM. It offers light, rustic Italian cuisine. It is a bit different from New York-style Italian that leaves you feeling like a huge salami about to roll out the door. This is the real deal. Light, delicious non-Americanized Italian food that you would find at a trattoria in Italy. Cash only. Bring your own wine. (updated Dec 2021)

## Stay safe

Smithtown is a very safe community. The average tourist needs not worry about anything dangerous happening to them, and the average resident cares a great deal about ensuring that their community remains safe at all times; the average resident in Smithtown takes a lot of pride in a safe community, and you will not find too many people who do not appreciate, respect, and support the community's first responders (who will go above and beyond to assist you if you need help in an emergency).

## Go next

* Huntington
* Islip
* Brookhaven