page_title: Setauket-East Setauket, New York
section_title: The War of Independence era
hierarchical_section_title: Setauket-East Setauket, New York / History / The War of Independence era
caption_attribution_description: English: The Caroline Church of Brookhaven, in Setauket, NY. The building dates to 1729.
context_page_description: Setauket-East Setauket, frequently just called Setauket, was a census-designated place in Suffolk County, New York, on the North Shore of Long Island. As of the 2010 United States Census, the CDP population was 15,477. The CDP encompassed the hamlets of Setauket and East Setauket. It was founded in 1655, the first settlement in what would become the Town of Brookhaven. As of 2020, Setauket-East Setauket was split into two separate CDPs called Setauket and East Setauket.
  Setauket was founded as an agricultural community in the mid-17th century, and was a regional center of activity during the American Revolutionary War noted for the Culper spy ring and the Battle of Setauket. Many of Setauket's early structures are intact and now form the Old Setauket Historic District. The Setaukets remain a mostly residential area, while bordering the more commercial enclaves of Port Jefferson and Stony Brook. The handful of businesses within the community largely cater to the over 24,500 students of Stony Brook University, which is adjacent to the CDP.
context_section_description: In the American Revolutionary War, the 1777 Battle of Setauket was fought on the village green.  At the time, Loyalists controlled Setauket and had fortified the Presbyterian church for use as their stronghold.  A Patriot force led by General Samuel Holden Parsons sailed across the Long Island Sound from Fairfield, Connecticut, proposing to attack the Loyalists.  Three hours of gunfire ensued before Parsons withdrew and returned to Connecticut with minimal casualties for either side.  During the gunfight, Parsons' men took cover behind Patriots' Rock, which remains near the village green with a commemorative plaque. Because of this rock’s massive size, it provided more than sufficient cover for the soldiers. Some of the bullets were embedded into the walls of the extant Caroline Church of Brookhaven.
  From 1778 to 1781, the Culper Spy Ring passed information about British troop movements gathered in New York City to George Washington.  The spy ring consisted primarily of Setauket residents, including its leader Benjamin Tallmadge and key agent Abraham Woodhull. The Culper ring was highly successful and alerted Washington to such plots as a surprise attack on the newly allied French forces, a scheme to counterfeit Continental currency, and the secret defection of a general in the Continental Army (afterwards known to be Benedict Arnold).  Washington later spent a night in Setauket during his 1790 tour of Long Island.
  During the British occupation, residents held religious services at the c.1729 Caroline Church (Episcopal) while British forces occupied the Setauket Presbyterian Church.  The pulpit of the Presbyterian church was destroyed and a number of gravestones from the surrounding cemetery were moved as part of the fortifications.  Services resumed after the war until lightning hit the church in 1812.  The Presbyterian church was rebuilt in 1812.  The village green continues to be owned by both churches.
caption: The Caroline Church of Brookhaven, built 1729, is the oldest extant church in Suffolk County
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