Unseasonably warm weather and the promise of hard clam delicacies including chowder, pies, and clams on the half shell drew what was likely the largest crowd in the history of the East Hampton Town Trustees’ annual Largest Clam Contest to the Amagansett Life-Saving and Coast Guard Station Museum on Sunday.
Vehicles filled the Atlantic Avenue Beach parking lot and lined Atlantic Avenue and parts of Bluff Road, the contest a perennial draw that has grown to incorporate live music and displays by groups including the town’s shellfish hatchery and the East End Classic Boat Society, which displayed and sold tickets for its annual raffle boat, an 11-foot dory skiff made with oak, mahogany, and cedar.
The lines were long for the raw bar, Manhattan and New England-style chowder, and other refreshments, and volunteers from the East Hampton Middle School’s Do Good, Be Good Club kept the proceedings moving smoothly. The 33rd annual contest, having outgrown the grounds of the Lamb Building on Bluff Road, which houses the trustees’ office, was held at the nearby museum for the second consecutive year.
“It’s amazing that we’re at the Amagansett Life-Saving Station Museum,” said one trustee, David Cataletto, “and the incredible history that links this community with the water and our maritime history.” The restored 1902 station, which played a small but crucial part in World War II, was open for tours, and Mr. Cataletto told the gathering that the museum seeks docents to provide weekend tours next year, encouraging those interested in volunteering their time to visit the museum’s website, amagansettlss.org.
“We’re just so happy to be sharing this day with everyone, just to be a part of this community and these wonderful bodies of water,” Mr. Cataletto told the crowd. “It’s a historical day here, there’s definitely the most people at any of the Largest Clam Contests. . . . We couldn’t have done it without everybody here today.”
The winners were announced shortly after 2 p.m., several regulars among them. In the clam chowder competition, Paul Roman was once again a winner for his Manhattan-style entry, and Jim Sullivan took the prize for his New England-style submission. Both contestants won in the respective categories last year. The lucky trio of Hugh King, the town and East Hampton Village historian, former Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc, and Sara Davison, former executive director of the Friends of Georgica Pond Foundation, served as judges in the chowder competition.
Clams were entered from five water bodies. Hog Creek saw just one contestant, so the Rev. Ben Shambaugh’s 10.7-ounce clam was the winner. From Lake Montauk, Eleanor Tobin’s 9.2-ounce contestant won in the junior category, and Dan Mongan’s 10.9-ounce entry took honors among the adult competitors.
From Accabonac Harbor, Kit Aldred’s 12.7-ounce entry was the largest in the junior category. “Holy mackerel, it’s bigger than you are,” Mr. Cataletto exclaimed to the winner. “Good digging!” Another regular winner, Dennis Curles, was the winner in the adult category, his 1-pound, 3.2-ounce quahog deemed the largest. From Three Mile Harbor, Shohei Kishi’s, 1-pound, 0.6-ounce entry took top honors in the junior category, while Clint Bennett’s 1-pound, 9.8-ounce behemoth won in the adult category.
Finally, winners from Napeague Harbor, from which the largest overall clam is typically harvested, were announced. Tyler Weber’s 1-pound, 8.6-ounce entry was the winner in the junior category. “That was a big clam,” Mr. Cataletto noted. “This is it, folks, the moment we’ve all been waiting for,” he continued. The largest clam in the adult category, and the overall winner, was Susan Ceslow’s 2-pound, 5.1-ounce clam colossus. “You could make five chowder pots out of that!” Mr. Cataletto said.
As a postscript, John (Barley) Dunne, director of the town’s shellfish hatchery, announced one more winner, this one for a clam-counting contest. Of the guesses as to how many seed clams were in a large jar, Carli Stuckart’s estimate of 2,627 was remarkably close to the official count of 2,640.
Winners took home prizes donated from local merchants, including an abundance of fishing and clamming gear. “Thanks so much to everyone for coming here today and being a part of this amazing community,” Mr. Cataletto concluded, “and keeping our waters clean.”
