On 5/10/03 (9:00:21 AM MDT), Rachel ([email protected]) asked, "Does anyone out there possibly have any info. on Jeremiah Jones b. 1828 m. Hannah Edwards....children: Norton Edward b. 1849, Fanny E. b. 1854, Mary E. b. 1856, & Ella J. b. 1858.....all of Brookhaven....searching for Jeremiah's parents and siblings....and Jones is such an unusual name...LOL....any help will be greatly appreciated...." For questions such as yours, you may want to contact the Brookhaven Free Library: Brookhaven Free Library 273 Beaver Dam Road Brookhaven, NY 11719 Tel: 631/286-1923 Fax: 631/286-0120 eMail: [email protected] http://www.suffolk.lib.ny.us/libraries/broo/ The pertinent geography: Brookhaven is a hamlet (an unincorporated community) in the south-central part of the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County. There are 8 villages (incorporated municipalities) and 36 hamlets all or partly in the Town of Brookhaven. 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 Brookhaven in the Town of Brookhaven is bordered on the north by the Hamlets of North Bellport and Yaphank; on the east by the Hamlet of Shirley; on the south by the Great South Bay; and, on the west by the Village of Bellport and the Hamlet of North Bellport. And, as occurs in every one of Suffolk County's 157 communities (0 cities, 31 villages and 126 hamlets), the Hamlet of Brookhaven has a different border than does the "Brookhaven, NY 11719" postal zone (i.e., a place can have a Brookhaven mailing address and not be in Brookhaven). These places that have a "Brookhaven, NY" mailing address that are not in the Hamlet of Brookhaven are in the Hamlet of North Bellport and in the Hamlet of Shirley. At the same time, there are places in the Hamlet of Brookhaven that have a "Yaphank, NY 11980" 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 Brookhaven in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County on pages 14 & 24 (map) and 25 (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.