A museum to celebrate the heritage of the Montaukett Indians is coming soon to Montauk.
New York City firefighter Lawrence Cooke bought some land on Essex Street in Montauk in 2000, and began to do some landscaping work. When he began to build a foundation for a new house, he came across an arrowhead and bestowed upon himself the job of “historian of Montaukett heritage.”
Cooke, a board member of the Montauk Historical Society, began a search for arrowheads around Montauk, finding them in Georgica Pond, Fort pond, and even Queens. Now, the discovery of these artifacts seems to come naturally to him, and his study of lithics and ancient Indian weaponry has helped him become an authority on what he finds.
He has had volunteer help from architects, attorneys, surveyors, and even artifact experts to set forth his dream of building the Native American Artifacts Museum at Second House Project. The Town of East Hampton has even negated the usual $1,700 building application fee for the project.
The second revision of the plan has been submitted by the architect, and only a small number of changes have to be made. After all is squared away, a fundraiser will be made for the Historical Society’s “Indian Museum Fund.” If you would like to contribute to the fund or would like more information, contact the East Hampton Historical Society at 631-324-6850.
