Tri-Hamlet news began with an idea from residents Jo Vega and her son Ronnie Matthews. Vega and her family resided in Shirley and Mastic for nine years. Her two daughters graduated from William Floyd High School. She was an avid photographer covering local events when she saw the opportunity to create a truly local, community-driven newspaper. Vega and Matthews decided to create a prototype of the publication they had envisioned and pitched the idea to local businesses and community leaders. They wanted to create a news source that would share uplifting stories from an honest and neutral standpoint. There was an overwhelmingly positive reaction and this encouraged the two to launch Tri Hamlet News.
Tri-Hamlet News was purchased in 2017 by the Patchogue Advance, Inc., parent company of community newspapers the Long Island Advance, Suffolk County News, Islip Bulletin, and Tide of Moriches. John “Terry” Tuthill IV is the current publisher and Nicole Fuentes is the Executive Editor.