NEWSLETTER
Saturday, September 6, 2025
Visitors will meet Loyalist William Jayne, who will share his views on the legendary Long Island-based Patriot spy ring
Setauket, New York— Join Preservation Long Island at Sherwood-Jayne Farm on Culper Spy Day 2025 for interactive tours with a different spin on George Washington’s Revolutionary War Spy Ring. Visitors will meet a Setauket British Loyalist known as “Big Bill the Tory”, who will share his views on the legendary Long Island-based Patriot spy ring.
During the American Revolution, New York City and Long Island had the highest concentration of Loyalists. Why did so many Long Islanders remain loyal to the King of England? What happened to them after the war? Stop by Sherwood-Jayne Farm on September 6 to meet Setauket Loyalist William Jayne (also known as “Big Bill the Tory”) and hear his side of the story!
The Sherwood-Jayne property opens at 10:00 AM. The first special Culper Spy Day guided house tour begins at 10:30 AM. Tours continue every half hour with the final tour at 3:00 PM. Free self-guided grounds tours all day.
Culper Spy Day is presented by Three Village Historical Society and Tri-Spy Tours. Visit Three Village Historical Society for a full list of the day’s events.
When: Saturday, September 6, 2025, 10:00 AM – 3:30 PM
Where: Sherwood-Jayne Farm, 55 Old Post Road, Setauket, NY
Culper Spy Day Tour Schedule: The property opens at 10:00 AM. The first guided tour begins at 10:30 AM. Tours continue every half hour with the final tour at 3:00 PM.
Tickets: $5 General Admission; FREE for Members & Children 9 and under. Reserve tickets in advance at https://preservationlongisland.org/culper-spy-day-2025/
About Sherwood-Jayne Farm
The Sherwood-Jayne Farm landscape, and accessory structures represent a continuum of architectural design, construction, and rural site planning that stretches over two centuries. Originally built around 1730 as a lean-to salt box dwelling, the house and agricultural setting were maintained as an operational farmstead for over 150 years by members of the Jayne family.
In 1908, Preservation Long Island’s founder, Howard C. Sherwood, acquired the property to showcase his lifetime interest in collecting, studying, and living with antiques. Restored by Joseph Everett Chandler of Boston, one of the leading Restoration/Colonial-Revival architects of the time, the house contains period furnishings and features original late eighteenth-century hand-painted floral wall frescoes. Located in a bucolic setting, the house maintains its nineteenth-century agrarian context with hayfields, meadows, woodlot, orchard, and pasture.
About Preservation Long Island
Preservation Long Island is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to celebrate and preserve Long Island’s diverse cultural and architectural heritage through advocacy, education, and the stewardship of historic sites and collections. http://preservationlongisland.org
Preservation Long Island maintains and interprets four historic sites, including the collections housed within each:
Joseph Lloyd Manor, Lloyd Harbor
Custom House, Sag Harbor
Sherwood-Jayne Farm, Setauket
Old Methodist Church and Exhibition Gallery, Cold Spring Harbor
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