Long Island form the souteasternmost port of the state of New York. It is separated from Connecticut by Long Island Sound and borders the Atlantic Ocean on the south. The southern shore is considerably flatter than the north. The western section of Long Island is included in New York City, and bridges connected Long Island with the island of Manhattan as well as the borough of The Bronx.
At the time that Henry Hudson discovered Long Island, its inhabitants were 13 tribes of the Algonquin group of Indians. They knew the island as Panmancke, Wamponomon, Mautowacks and Sewanhacky. French Protestants from near the river Waal in the Netherlands were the first settlers, arriving around 1625 under Dutch protection. Not long afterwards, immigrants from New England began to settle in various locations.
Known as Lange Eylandt during Dutch rule, the name was changed to Nassau by the colonial legislature. Although the inhabitants did not accept that as the name of the island, the name survives in Nassau County.
A good deal of military activity took place during the American Revolution, and the Battle of Long Island stands as the major engagement during that conflict.
When Charles A. Lindbergh took off on the first solo trans-Atlantic flight on May 20, 1927, it was from Roosevelt Field in Garden City on Long Island.