Rocky Point is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Brookhaven, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, Rocky Point had a population of 13,633.

History

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Rocky Point is home to the site where American radio company RCA once operated a large transmitting and transmitter research facility, known as Radio Central. RCA began to transmit transatlantic radio messages from Radio Central over longwave after its opening on November 5, 1921.

On January 7, 1927, AT&T initiated the first transatlantic commercial telephone service, linking London and New York. AT&T's transmitter was at Radio Central, and their receiver was in Houlton, Maine. The radiotelephone signal from Radio Central was received by the British General Post Office’s receiver facility in Cupar, Scotland.

The Rocky Point site was decommissioned in 1978 and demolished in the 1980s. It now consists of many concrete ruins and downed telephone poles and radio towers, owned by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. It is part of the Rocky Point Pine Barrens State Forest, which is in the Long Island Central Pine Barrens. The site gives an interesting insight into the 1920s, because—being in the middle of the forest—the footprints of the site remain largely untouched since its operational period. The western terminus of the Paumanok Path hiking trail is in the forest, with the eastern terminus at the Montauk Point Light.

The hamlet was also served by a station of the Long Island Rail Road, located just east of Broadway between Prince Road and King Road. The station was opened in 1895, with service heading east to Wading River and west to Port Jefferson and New York City. The station was abandoned in 1938, with a replica of the station, containing a Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) museum, standing on the site today.

Geography

The community is on the North Shore of Long Island. According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Rocky Point had a population of 13,633. The median age was 40.0 years. 22.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 13.2% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 94.7 males age 18 and over.

97.4% of residents lived in urban areas, while 2.6% lived in rural areas.

There were 4,826 households in Rocky Point, of which 34.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 55.7% were married-couple households, 15.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 22.5% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 20.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 4,820 households, out of which 42.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.9% were headed by married couples living together, 11.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.0% were non-families. 19.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.7% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.89, and the average family size was 3.34.

Notable people

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  • Danny Burawa (born 1988), major league baseball pitcher for the New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves during the 2015 season

References

  • Rocky Point Historical Society