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Currituck Beach Lighthouse

Currituck Beach Lighthouse

Constructed in response to the loss of boats and crewmen in the mid-1800s, Currituck Beach Lighthouse has become a historic site since the early nineties. With its brick façade and home to a once small village and now a tourist attraction. This lighthouse is a place to visit and experience, whether alone or with family and friends alike.

Corolla, North Carolina

Corolla is an unincorporated community located along the outer banks of Currituck County, North Carolina. It has a population of 500 people, but during the summer the population increases into the thousands.

Known as a quiet town until a development boom brought attention, making it a tourist attraction for all to come and visit.

Corolla Village

Known to be a popular tourist attraction with restored shops with friendly merchants. Corolla Village is known to be one of the few villages that have stood the test of time and offers visitors to walk the streets for a much simpler time.

With the restored Whalehead Mansion and the Wild Horse Museum. There’s plenty to see while you visit this historic site.

History

The Lighthouse was constructed on December 1, 1875, between Cape Henry Light and Bodie Island. With it being a first-order lighthouse, it housed the largest of the seven Fresnel lens sizes. With the source being a Funck’s hydraulic float lamp.

Unlike the other lighthouses, this one was not painted, leaving the texture of the brick visible for all to see.

Fast forward to the year 1939, and the lighthouse was automated after a merger between the U.S. Coast Guard and the Bureau of Lighthouses.

In 1980, the refurbishing was done by the Outer Banks Conservationists or OBC for short and was funded and all their workers were volunteers. Since 1991, visitors have been allowed to climb the lighthouse, which consists of 220 steps that lead to the outdoor gallery.

Yet, the room where the lens is located is not allowed as it’s the original lens and is still functional to this day. It comes on every night and shines about 158 feet at 20-second intervals to warn ships hugging the chain of barrier islands.

The OBC was granted the title of the lighthouse in 2003 by the federal government, with the approval of the coast guard.

Outer Banks Conservationists

It is a nonprofit organization and operates two public historical sites. The lighthouse is one of them and the Island Farm is the other. They also conduct their own research to share as educational sites and use donations to keep the sites open to the public each year.

Lighthouse Keepers

The Lighthouse was monitored by three lightkeepers and their families. The first was Captain Nathan Swain and Francis Slice Swain, who ran the lighthouse from 1902-1920, and then it was transferred to Loren Edward Tillett, SR. from 1921-1930.

Today, the Lighthouse Keeper is Luis Garcia from the Outer Banks Conservationists.

Currituck Beach Lighthouse Museum

Operated by the Outer Banks Conservationists since the 1990s. Their mission is to preserve the historic sight for all to see, along with the historic Island Farm on Roanoke Island.

If you plan to come to see the lighthouse, it’s open daily from 9 am-5 pm, and also depends on the weather. The admissions are ten dollars for people ages 4 and up. Anyone under the age of four is free as long as they are in a carrier. All admissions fees are paid at the front, and 70% of the fee is deducted as a donation.

Also, if you find yourself becoming a regular, you can buy a season pass which ranges from $50(individual pass) to $120(family pass). Both passes include unlimited visits to both the lighthouse and the island farm.

Currituck Beach

Currituck Beach is known to be a beach with two divided sides to it. The first being the Currituck Mainland and the Currituck Barrier Island Beaches. The Beaches are also called the Northern Outer Banks, Currituck Island, or Corolla.

Yet, the barrier island region is the one that attracts the bulk of its visitors, due to the historic sights and selections of shops and other activities.

Some of the activities on the beach you can enjoy are surfing, kayaking, fishing, or golfing at the nearby golf club.

Dining and Other Activities

If you find yourself by the Lighthouse and are looking for a place to eat you can always go and visit the Broken Plate Kitchen, Corolla Pizza & Deli, or Mama Easley’s for some delicious soul food.

While you’re at it you can bring the family to the Corolla Adventure Park. Where you can climb and zipline with trained professionals there to guide you during the fun. Take highway 12 all the way north and you shouldn’t miss it.

While you’re there, make a stop at their snack shack, where they serve drinks, ice cream, and popcorn.

ENC Explorer
Author: ENC Explorer

After getting accepted to ECU, I started looking for things to do in and around Greenville, NC. However, my searches kept taking me to places in South Carolina! There must be things to do around ECU, so I started asking other students. They kept telling me to graduate and move away! This inspired me to begin exploring eastern North Carolina and build this website as a showcase of the places to go, sights to see, and things to do all over eastern NC. I have fallen in love with this region and started taking up roots here. After graduating, I didn't move away - I bought a house here and continue to explore eastern North Carolina.

This place is for Publicity

This place is for Publicity

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