The encampment site was chosen because of its proximity to two Shinnecock billboards, one unfinished, that have become symbols of contention between tribespeople and the town and state governments. The Shinnecocks say that the tribal land the billboards sit on is exempt from local, county, and state regulation, but the town and state have argued otherwise. 

About 10 years ago, when Averill Geus discovered a reel of nitrate film in her barn, her son warned her that it could combust and burn the whole place down at any minute. She donated it to LTV, which learned recently that it contained never-before-seen footage of a 1915 Independence Day celebration in East Hampton.

One point of information included in a press conference by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Monday may come as a surprise to many in East Hampton: The Covid-19 positive test rate here was 4.41 percent that day, less than .2 percent lower than the average daily rate in Riverhead, which is under new restrictions as of Monday.