A Celebration, Finally

The year was 1920. World War I had ended, Prohibition had started (no doubt with bootleggers hard at work in these parts), the country was struggling to control a deadly flu pandemic — and on September 25, 1920, East Hampton Village was incorporated.

Given that the colony of East Hampton had been around since 1648, you might have expected village incorporation to occur much sooner. But it wasn’t until 1920 when the citizenry called for that step, driven by the desire for services like roads, water, police and fire protection to be under one roof. So, in September 1920, a total of 223 citizens — including women, who had only recently won suffrage — voted to incorporate by a margin of 166-57.

Fast forward to September 2020. East Hampton Village was poised to observe its centennial with a full slate of events, but then came COVID-19 to thwart the festivities. A year later, we’re happy to report that last weekend the village was finally able to celebrate in style, with appropriate measures in place, of course, given that while we may be through with COVID-19, it is not yet through with us. From a classic car show, parade and the burial of a time capsule (to be opened in 2120), to children’s activities, a ballgame, history talks and live music, this time around the celebration came off without a hitch.

We can’t help but see a certain irony in the fact that the festivities were postponed due to our own virulent 21st century pandemic. It’s also somewhat curiously coincidental that, a century later, we have only recently extracted ourselves from a brutal war — this one in Afghanistan rather than Europe — and while alcohol is legal and flows freely at summer parties throughout the village (which it no doubt did surreptitiously in 1920), marijuana is also now legal in New York, and its relative merits and financial benefits are being debated across the state as boards consider whether or not to allow its sale.

All this makes us wonder if perhaps a new manifestation of the Roaring Twenties may be on our doorstep. In any case, happy birthday, East Hampton Village. Let the festivities go on — and you might want to keep your eye on that stock market.