Stony Brook is a hamlet and
census-designated place (CDP) in the
Town of
Brookhaven in
Suffolk County, New York, on the
North Shore of
Long Island. Begun in the colonial era as an agricultural enclave, the hamlet experienced growth first as a resort town and then to its current state as one of Long Island's major tourist towns and centers of education. Despite being referred to as a village by residents and tourists alike, Stony Brook has never been legally incorporated by the state. The population was 13,740 at the 2010 census.