List of summer colonies

The term summer colony is often used, particularly in the United States and Canada, to describe well-known resorts and upper-class enclaves, typically located near the ocean or mountains of New England or the Great Lakes. Many of these historic communities are considered quiet bastions of old money, though some, such as the The Hamptons, are also well-known for their celebrity-driven social scenes. Additionally, their economies tend to be driven largely by this tourist trade, particularly those communities that are remote or on islands.

Well-known summer colonies in North America

United States

Connecticut

*Blue Lake (an area in North Stonington)
*Fenwick (an area in Old Saybrook)

Delaware

*Rehoboth Beach
*Bethany Beach
*Fenwick Island
*Lewes
*Dewey Beach

Maine

*Bar Harbor (includes Northeast Harbor) ["In the Imperial language of the time, Bar Harbor was a summer colony, and its local residents were natives" cite journal|title=The Gilded Age and the Making of Bar Harbor|journal=Geographical Review|author=Hornsby, Stephen J.|volume=83|issue=4|pages=466|year=1993|month=October|doi=10.2307/215826]
*Islesboro (includes Dark Harbor)
*North Haven
*Vinalhaven
*Winter Harbor Grindstone Neck
*Kennebunkport
*York Harbor

Maryland

*St. Michaels
*Easton
*Cambridge

Massachusetts

*Cape Cod
*Lenox
*Marblehead
*Martha's Vineyard ["Martha’s Vineyard, that summer colony for the super rich and those who come to gawk at them" cite book|title=Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez|author=Rodriguez, Richard|publisher=Bantam Books|pages=195|ISBN=0553272934]
*Nantucket ["the transformation of Nantucket from decaying backwater, long since past its heyday as a whaling center, into a thriving tourist area." cite book|title=Inventing New England: Regional Tourism in the Nineteenth Century|author=Brown, Dona|year=1997|publisher=Smithsonian|ISBN=1560987995]

Michigan

*Mackinac Island
*Harbor Springs
*Petoskey
*Charlevoix

Minnesota

*Lake Minnetonka

New Hampshire

*Jackson
*Little Boar's Head
*Sugar Hill
*Wolfeboro

New Jersey

Listed from North to South
*Long Branch, New Jersey
*Elberon, New Jersey
*Deal, New Jersey
*Allenhurst, New Jersey
*Spring Lake, New Jersey
*Sea Girt, New Jersey
*Manasquan, New Jersey
*Point Pleasant Beach
*Bay Head, New Jersey
*Mantoloking, New Jersey
*Lavallette, New Jersey
*Long Beach Island including Barnegat Light, New Jersey; Loveladies, New Jersey; Beach Haven, New Jersey
*Margate City, New Jersey
*Longport, New Jersey
*Avalon, New Jersey
*Stone Harbor, New Jersey
*Cape May, New Jersey

New York

*Fishers Island
* The Hamptons including Westhampton Beach, NY; Southampton, NY; Bridgehampton, NY; East Hampton, NY; Quogue, NY; Sagaponack, NY; Sag Harbor, NY; Amagansett, NY; Hampton Bays, NY; Remsenburg, NY; Montauk, NY
*Lake George
*Fire Island

Ohio

*Kelley's Island
*South Bass Island

Rhode Island

*Block Island
*Little Compton
*Newport
*Watch Hill
*Narragansett

Wisconsin

*Door County
*Lake Geneva

Canada

*Charlevoix, Quebec
*Campobello Island / St. Andrews, New Brunswick
*Cap-Pelé / Shediac, New Brunswick
*Chester / Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia
*Baddeck / Bras d'Or Lake, Nova Scotia
*Eastern Townships, Quebec
*Muskoka, Ontario ("Cottage Country")

References