This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/jUB.2ACI/1092.1 Message Board Post: On 10/21/05 (8:38:22 PM MDT), in a posting to the Suffolk County Ancestry Board that was 'gatewayed' to NYSUFFOL-L@rootsweb.com, Daniel Fischer (dfischer@optonline.net) asked, "Seeking ancestry of Harriet Elisabeth Davis, born in Stony Brook ca 1805-1810. Was married to Daniel Shaw Dimon of Jamesport,LI and moved there. Possible given names for Davis relations could be James,Goldsmith, Milton and Henry." For questions such as yours, you may want to contact the Riverhead Free Library (the library can suggest which local newspaper might have this information and other possible sources of information): Riverhead Free Library 330 Court Street Riverhead, NY 11901 Tel: 631/727-3228 Fax: 631/727-4762 eMail: rflref@suffolk.lib.ny.us http://river.suffolk.lib.ny.us/ The pertinent geography: Jamesport is a hamlet (unincorporated area) in the east part of the Town of Riverhead, in the northeast part of Suffolk County, along the Riverhead/Southold town line. There are no villages (municipal corporations) and 7 hamlets all or partly in the Town of Riverhead (Riverhead is the only town in either Suffolk or Nassau County without any villages within its borders). There are no cities and 10 towns in Suffolk County. There are 2 Indian reservations in Suffolk County. (I'm including after my name a NYS Geographic Glossary with the NYS definitions of county, city, town, village, hamlet and postal zone.) Beginning on the north and moving in a clockwise direction, the Hamlet of Jamesport in the Town of Riverhead is bordered on the north by the Hamlet Northville; on the east by the Hamlet of Laurel in the Town of Southold (the Riverhead/Southold town line); on the south by the Great Peconic Bay; and, on the west by the Hamlet of Aquebogue. And, as occurs in every one of Suffolk County's 157 communities (0 cities, 31 villages and 126 hamlets), the Hamlet of Jamesport has a different border than does the "Jamesport, NY 11947" postal zone (i.e., a place can have a Jamesport mailing address and not be in Jamesport and a place can have other than a Jamesport mailing address and be in Jamesport). Those places that have a "Jamesport, NY" mailing address that are not in the Hamlet of Jamesport are in the Hamlet of Aquebogue; and, at the same time, there are places in the Hamlet of Jamesport with a "Laurel, NY 11948" mailing address. For those who have their copy of the 2004 or earlier edition of the LI Population Survey or have already downloaded the report from the Long Island Power Authority web site (eMail me directly if you need instructions on how to access and download the report), you'll find the Hamlet of Jamesport in the Town of Riverhead, Suffolk County on pages 14 & 26 (map) and 27 (population estimate). I hope this information is useful or, at least, interesting. Regards, Walter Greenspan Cities, Towns, Villages, Hamlets and Postal Zones in New York State New York State is divided into counties. County A county is a municipal corporation, a subdivision of the state, created to perform state functions; a "regional" government. All counties are divided into cities, towns and Indian reservations. City A city is a unique governmental entity with its own special charter. Cities are not sub-divided, except into neighborhoods, which are informal geographic areas. Town A town is a municipal corporation and encompasses all territory within the state except that within cities or Indian reservations. Towns can be sub-divided into villages and hamlets. Village A village is a general purpose municipal corporation formed voluntarily by the residents of an area in one or more towns to provide themselves with municipal services. The pattern of village organization is similar to those of a city. A village is divided into neighborhoods, which are informal geographic areas. Hamlet A hamlet is an unincorporated area in one or more towns that is governed at-large by the town(s) it is in. A hamlet is divided into neighborhoods, which are informal geographic areas. Postal Zone "City" and "Town" A postal zone "City" and "Town" is an administrative district established by the U.S. Postal Service to deliver the mail. Postal zone "City" and "Town" may not (but are encouraged to) conform to municipal or community borders. Thus, postal zone location does not always determine city, village or hamlet location. Please be aware: In many areas of New York State, the problem of non-conforming postal zones leads to a situation where the majority of places have a different community name in their mailing address than the community where that place is actually located.