Bay Shore and the surrounding area were called Penataquit, meaning "crooked creek," by the Secatogue Indians. In 1708, Queen Anne of England validated John Mowbray's purchase of the area from the Secatogues. Mowbray, a tailor and teacher from Southampton, is said to have paid for the land with "several eel spears." Early colonists earned their living harvesting fish, oysters, and salt hay. By 1776, local artisans had earned a reputation for building fine small boats, many of which were used against the British in the Revolutionary War. In 1862, regular ferry service between Bay Shore and Fire Island began. During the 1880s, Bay Shore became known as the "Garden Spot of Long Island" as rail service brought throngs of tourists to this seaside community of hotels, horse-drawn carriages, gas-lit streets, summer estates, and sailing boats. Briefly, from 1915 to 1916, Bay Shore was a center of the silent film industry. After World War II, summer tourists were replaced by permanent residents as families left the crowded city for the suburbs. Today, Bay Shore is enjoying a renaissance with Touro College's new campus, an expanded YMCA, the revitalization of its downtown, and Watchogue Creek Park as a new community gathering place for concerts and events. Three centuries after its founding, this hamlet on the widest part of the Great South Bay maintains its maritime heritage and architectural charm.