Shinnecock Canal in the context of "Westhampton, New York"

Shinnecock Inlet is the easternmost of five major inlets connecting bays to the Atlantic Ocean through the narrow 100-mile-long (160 km) Outer Barrier that stretches from New York City to Southampton, New York on the south shore of Long Island. It splits Westhampton Island from the peninsula extending from Southampton Village. The inlet was formed by the 1938 New England hurricane, which killed several people when it permanently broke through the island in Hampton Bays, New York. The name comes from the Shinnecock Indian Nation.

Maintenance of the inlet has been controversial. It saves boaters in the Hamptons several miles in access to the Atlantic Ocean. The inlet is almost directly lined up with the Shinnecock Canal between Shinnecock Bay and the Peconic Bay, which allows a shortcut to the ocean for boaters on the North Fork of Long Island.