Park 1 (a): William Floyd Estate, Fire Island National Seashore, New York

5/27/12. This weekend we have been visiting grandparents on eastern Long Island, so we took some time off this Sunday morning to make a quick visit to William Floyd Estate which is park of the Fire Island National Seashore. The irony is that Muriel grew up in this area and never before visited this site!

General Wm Floyd's Gravestone

We thought it would be an easy ride, but like so many of the other park sites, we got off track and it took us a long while to find the entrance. We arrived on a hot and humid morning and found the trail for the main house. A ranger greeted us and said that there would be a tour soon. Since we had time to wait, we walked down a wooded trail to the family cemetary in the meantime.

According to the National Park Service Website, this Floyd family originated in Brecknockshire, Wales. The founder of the family in America, Richard Floyd (ca. 1620-1690), first appeared in American records in the late 1660s as a leading landowner on the North Shore of Long Island, first in Huntington, then in Setauket.

A half-century later, in 1718, his son Richard Floyd II (1665-1738), bought over 4,400 acres of property from William "Tangier" Smith of the Manor of Saint George. The first Floyd to live on the estate, Richard II's son Nicoll Floyd constructed the first portion of the "Old Mastic House" in 1724. He developed the land into a prosperous plantation, using both slave and free laborers to raise grain, flax, sheep, and cattle.

Floyd Family Cemetery

The estate contains the ancestral house, grounds, and cemetery of the William Floyd family. William Floyd, a Revolutionary War general and a signer of the Declaration of Independence, was born in the house in 1734. Between 1718 and 1976, eight generations of Floyds managed the property and adapted it to their changing needs. The family used the house and property in different ways over the years.

Old Mastic House

After visiting the cemetery, we strolled back to the main house, trying desperately to avoid the mosquitos, and was welcomed by the volunteer who began our tour. She had lots of energy and a real love for history as she quizzed while we went through the house. It was an usual house because of all the additions that had been added over the years. Typically, there were many time-period artifacts (including a very old piano) that were fascinating.

Once we left the main house, we found there was not much else to do on the property. There is plenty of land that stretches all the way to the water, but there are not any walking trails. We hope that funds might become available in the future for the National Park Service to open up more of this large and beautiful property as a park.