Editing Cherry Grove, New York (section)

===20th century===
In 1921, the Perkinson family sold all the land east of Duryea Walk to Lone Hill, and then divided what was left into 109 building lots. A lot 50 × {{convert|80|ft|m}} could be purchased for $250 or less, and ocean-front lots cost no more than a dollar a front foot. Buildings from the newly deactivated [[Camp Upton]] in [[Yaphank]], were ported over to form the core of the new colony. A post office was established in 1922 at the site of where "Tides" (formerly "The Monster") is today; the first [[boardwalk]]s were built in 1929. In 1930, Duffy's Hotel replaced the original hotel and was the only place with electricity and a phone.

The [[1938 New England hurricane|1938 Long Island Express Hurricane]] destroyed much of Cherry Grove and discouraged mainlanders from coming. In their stead, the gay community that already frequented the island settled there moving from Ocean Beach, with figures such as [[Antoine de Paris]] and [[W. H. Auden]] leading the way.<ref name="jiler">{{Cite book |last=Jiler |first=John |title=Dark wind: a true account of hurricane Gloria's assault on Fire Island |date=1993 |publisher=St Martin's press |isbn=978-0-312-09311-2 |location=New York |pages=46–48 |author-link=John Jiler}}</ref>
[[Image:Hotel Ciel Fire Island Pines Long Island New York.jpg|thumb|Belvedere]]
In the 1950s, Cherry Grove was already known as a "safe haven" one of three that included [[Provincetown, Massachusetts]], and [[Key West]], where they "could only fleetingly enjoy a carefree, 24-hour-a-day queer life by running off to a handful of destinations comfortably removed from a homophobic America."<ref name=Vintage>{{cite news|url=https://www.out.com/print/2020/5/06/these-vintage-cherry-grove-photos-will-make-you-miss-queer-beaches|work=[[Out (magazine)|Out]]|title=These Vintage Cherry Grove Photos Will Make You Miss Queer Beaches|first=Bill|last=Henning|issue=May–June 2020|access-date=December 1, 2020|archive-date=December 4, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204211529/https://www.out.com/print/2020/5/06/these-vintage-cherry-grove-photos-will-make-you-miss-queer-beaches|url-status=live}}</ref> Only 60 miles from New York City, it was isolated because of its location off Long Island that required access by a ferry or, at the time, [[seaplane]].<ref name=Vintage /> The gay aura of the town supposedly arose when [[Christopher Isherwood]] and [[W. H. Auden]] arrived dressed as [[Dionysus]] and [[Ganymede (mythology)|Ganymede]], carried aloft on a gilded [[litter (vehicle)|litter]] by a group of singing followers.<ref>Ester Newton, ''Cherry Grove, Fire Island: Sixty Years in America's First Gay and Lesbian Town'', 1995, Beacon Press, {{ISBN|0-8070-7927-8}}</ref>

[[Truman Capote]] stayed at the Carrington House, just east of Cherry Grove, where in 1957, he completed his groundbreaking novella, ''[[Breakfast at Tiffany's (novel)|Breakfast at Tiffany's]]''.<ref name=Baldwin>{{cite web|url=https://www.fireislandnews.com/arts-culture/book-reviews/james-baldwins-fire-island/|work=Fire Island News|title=OUT SOUTH SHORE: James Baldwin's Fire Island|first=Christopher |last=Verga|date=August 22, 2024|access-date=August 29, 2024}}</ref>

The hamlet's major hotel and lounge in the 1950s was Duffy's, which burned on September 27, 1956, and was replaced by the Ice Palace Hotel.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fireislandcc.org/cherry.html |title=Fire Island Chamber of Commerce Cherry Grove History |publisher=Fireislandcc.org |access-date=December 4, 2013 |archive-date=April 7, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130407141305/http://www.fireislandcc.org/cherry.html|url-status=usurped }}</ref> John Eberhardt, a developer who died in 2014, was credited for building the Belvedere Hotel and many other properties in the hamlet, from 1956 to the 1970s.<ref>{{cite news |title=John Henry Eberhardt |url=https://www.palmbeachdailynews.com/article/20140322/NEWS/303229934 |access-date=August 21, 2021 |work=Palm Beach Daily News |date=March 22, 2014}}</ref><ref name=Belvedere>{{cite web|url=https://libn.com/2025/04/10/iconic-fire-island-hotel-hits-market-for-first-time-in-68-years/|work=Long Island Business News|title=Iconic Fire Island Hotel Hits Market for First Time in 68 Years |first=David|last=Winzelberg|date=April 10, 2025|access-date=April 10, 2025}}</ref>

In early May 1959, [[James Baldwin]] visited Cherry Grove, staying in the Grove Hotel, where he wrote part of his intersectional
Novel, ''[[Another Country (novel)|Another Country]]''.<ref name=Baldwin />