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/711.2 Message Board Post: On 5/17/03 (12:35:23 PM MDT), in a posting to the Suffolk County Board that was 'gatewayed' to [email protected], Amy Ritterbusch ([email protected]) asked, "Does anyone know where to find Long Island city/town directories? Maybe they are available on microfilm at some of the libraries there? Specifically I'm looking for the town of Southold in the 1860's. My husband has ancestors who were married there in 1865, but then moved to Illinois: George Edward RITTERBUSCH & Elizabeth BUTLER (married Dec 25, 1865, First Church of Southold/Presbyterian Church). We have no idea what they were doing on Long Island or what the connection was. I thought if we could see what other Ritterbusch and Butler families were listed in the directories we might find their siblings or parents." You don't indicate in which village or hamlet in the Town of Southold the family you are searching for was residing: there are 1 village (Greenport) and 10 hamlets (Cutchogue, East Marion, Fishers Island, Greenport West, Laurel, Mattituck, New Suffolk, Orient, Peconic and Southold) in the Town of Southold. Assuming for the moment that you are looking in the Hamlet of Southold in the Town of Southold, you may be able to get some assistance at the Southold Free Library (other communities within the Town of Southold are in the service area of other libraries): Southold Free Library 53705 Main Road Southold, NY 11971 Tel: 631/765-2077 Fax: 631/765-2197 eMail: [email protected] http://sohd.suffolk.lib.ny.us/ The pertinent geography: Southold is a hamlet (an unincorporated area) in the center of the Town of Southold, Suffolk County. There are 1 village and 10 hamlets in the Town of Southold. 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 Southold in the Town of Southold is bordered on the north by Long Island Sound; on the east by the Hamlet of Greenport West; on the south by the Little Peconic Bay; and, on the west by the Hamlet of Peconic. And, as occurs in every one of Suffolk County's 157 communities (0 cities, 31 villages and 126 hamlets), the Hamlet of Southold has a different border than does the "Southold, NY 11971" postal zone (i.e., a place can have a Southold mailing address and not be in Southold and a place can have other than a Southold mailing address and be in Southold). Those places that have a "Southold, NY" mailing address that are not in the Hamlet of Southold are in the Hamlet of West Greenport; and, at the same time, there are places in the Hamlet of Southold with a "Peconic, NY 11936" mailing address. For those who have their copy of the 2002 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 Southold in the Town of Southold, Suffolk County on pages 15 & 30 (map) and 31 (population estimate). I hope this information is useful or, at least, interesting. 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.