Cold Spring Harbor has a long history as a working town. The land originally belonged to the Matinecock people before the First Purchase in 1653. The document today resides in the Huntington Town archives. European settlers named the area after the abundance of freshwater springs. The town was called Cold Spring before “Harbor” was added to the town’s name in 1826.
Mills have an early history in Cold Spring Harbor, which were vital to the economic growth of the region. A gristmill and sawmill were built by 1682 across the Cold Spring River. A woolen mill followed in 1700, with additional woolen mills later on, and a paper mill in 1782. The first school was built in 1790. Local shipyards, brickyards, and blacksmith shops were born. Farms grew wheat, hay, corn, and other crops, and sheep pastured on fields. In 1836 the Cold Spring Whaling Company was launched by local entrepreneurs John H. Jones, Walter R. Jones, and thirty-three local investors. After the collapse of regional whaling, Cold Spring Harbor became a popular destination. From the 1880s and into the 1900s, steamers visiting from New York City brought day-trippers looking for a bucolic picnic setting. Hotels, bakeries, restaurants, and fashionable shops emerged to cater to this population.
1936 was the centennial anniversary of the founding of the Cold Spring Whaling Company which inspired the creation of two organizations, the Society for the Preservation of Cold Spring Harbor’s History and the Whaling Museum Society. The Whaling Museum was founded as the Whaling Museum Society in 1936. The Cold Spring Harbor Whaling Museum opened to the public in 1943.
