Annual Windmill Lighting Will Honor Healthcare Heroes

SOUTHAMPTON, NY — A beloved East End holiday tradition will take place Monday as the lighting of the historic windmill at Stony Brook Southampton unfolds.

"The lighting ceremony will be dedicated to frontline healthcare workers in recognition of their tireless and continuing efforts to care for the community during the coronavirus pandemic," organizers said.

The switch will be flipped and the windmill illuminated at 6 p.m. at Stony Brook Southampton, located at 239 Montauk Highway in Southampton.

With an eye toward adherence to coronavirus protocols, the number of participants at this year's event will be limited and those in attendance will wear masks and maintain social distancing. Although attendees will be allowed inside the windmill, only two or three at a time will be able to step inside.

Those in attendance will include New York State Assemblyman Fred Thiele, Suffolk County Legislator Bridget Fleming, Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman, health care workers from Stony Brook Southampton Hospital, and Stony Brook Southampton CAO, Robert Chaloner, organizers said.

The Stony Brook Southampton Windmill is an "iconic" landmark that has been located on the Shinnecock Hills campus since 1888 when Janet Hoyt, the wife of William Hoyt —builder of the Shinnecock Inn— heard that the windmill on Mill Hill Lane was going to be torn down and had it moved to their Shinnecock Hills property, organizers said.

The Southampton College windmill was one of three windmills in Southampton Village; the other two were destroyed.

Today, the windmill and its adjacent enclosed quad is used for events including readings, receptions, orientations, celebrations, workshops, fundraising dinners, and more.

The windmill was also deemed a literary landmark in 2013: Through the efforts of the graduate programs in creative writing, the windmill was officially designated by the Library Association of America as a literary landmark. The designation honors Tennessee Williams' 1957 residency in the windmill; during his stay, he wrote the play “The Day on Which a Man Dies” about the death of his friend Jackson Pollock.