An approximately three-tenths-of-a-mile long stretch of beach, and adjacent parking lot, in Buxton is temporarily closed due to petroleum contamination and remnant military infrastructure. More
Stories are a shared history that connects us to everything around us - people, objects, animals, or places. It is through stories that we learn about the triumphs, tragedies, daily struggles, challenges and opportunities that have shaped an area and all that can be found within it.
The history of Cape Hatteras National Seashore is rich with stories from the earliest settlements to modern times. Stories of war, piracy, devastating storms, shipwrecks, and moving a lighthouse have all helped shape the seashore and the people who live here.
Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is located on North Carolina’s Outer Banks. It was completed in 1870. The lighthouse's 180-foot high focal plane is the tallest in the United States. In 1999, Cape Hatteras Lighthouse and its associated structures were moved approximately half a mile to their current locations, with the lantern relit on 13 November that year. Explore the lighthouse and grounds via HDP’s virtual tour, animations, and archival HABS documentation.
In the summer of 1999, the Cape Hatteras Light Station was moved 2,900 feet from the spot where it had stood since 1870. Because of shoreline erosion in this dynamic coastal environment, the lighthouse was now dangerously close to the ocean's edge. The remarkable undertaking including efforts to protect the structures, maintain the coastal setting of the original site, and preserve the original orientation to the shoreline and spatial arrangements of historic structures.
Over the years, more than one lighthouse has stood watch at Bodie Island. From 1847 to 1872, a total of three lighthouses were constructed, each one with a unique story.
In the spring of 1942, German U-boats prowled the ocean off the Outer Banks of North Carolina and sank freighters at will. By June, they had sunk 397 merchant vessels and the area earned the name "Torpedo Junction."
