Although we saw a lot of really nice, well-restored lighthouses on our trip, one of the best was the Currituck Beach Lighthouse located near Corolla, North Carolina.   Many other folks must have thought so also, as it was the most crowded lighthouse and museum that we visited.

The 158 foot tall lighthouse is located 34 miles south of the Cape Henry Lighthouses in Virginia, and 32 1/2 miles north-northwest of the Bodie Island Lighthouse, at 36 degrees 22' 36" north latitude, 75 degrees 49' 51" west longitude.  It's a very nice drive up the beach road from Kitty Hawk and Nags Head, through Duck and past hundreds of beautiful beach houses.

For a small admission charge you can climb the near perfect set of 214 iron stairs to the top to see the first order Fresnel lens.  The original source of light was a mineral oil lamp (kerosene) consisting of 5 concentric wicks, the largest of which was 4 inches in diameter.

Before the advent of electricity, a mechanical system using suspended counterweights was required to rotate the huge lenses that made the light appear to flash.  This system powered a clockwork mechanism beneath the lantern, much like the workings of a grandfather clock.      The keepers had to crank the weights by hand every two and a half-hours.

With a 20-second flash cycle, on for 3 seconds, off for 17 seconds,   the light can be seen for 18 nautical miles.  The distinctive sequence enables the lighthouse to not only warn mariners, but also helps them  identify their position.

    
Construction began on the Currituck Beach Lighthouse in 1873, with completion two years later.  The US Lighthouse board had decided in 1872 to build the lighthouse because ship cargo and lives were being lost along the 40 miles of dark coastline that lay beyond the reach of     existing lighthouses.  Southbound ships sailing close to shore to avoid the Gulf Streams were especially in danger.  The Currituck Beach Lighthouse was the last major brick lighthouse to be constructed on the outer banks.  To distinguish it from the other regional lighthouses, the exterior was left unpainted.  This aspect of
the lighthouse gives visitors a sense of the multitude of bricks used in the structure.

The lighthouse was automated in 1939 when the United States Coast Guard assumed the duties of the Bureau of Lighthouses.  The keepers were removed, since there was no longer a need to clean the lenses, trim the wicks, fuel the lamps, and wind the clockwork mechanism which rotated the beacon.

As I said earlier, the restoration of this lighthouse, its grounds and walkways is first class.  The entire compound is just beautiful.  There is the lighthouse itself, this huge brick and iron structure that is perfectly done as well as the keepers quarters, the museum/gift shop, and a couple of other, smaller buildings.

The Lighthouse Keeper's House, a Victorian "stick style" dwelling, was   constructed from pre-cut and labeled materials which were shipped to      the island on a barge and then assembled on site.  In 1876 when the house was completed, two keepers and their families shared the duplex house in the isolated seaside setting.  Identical in style to the keeper's house is a smaller Keeper's House, an 1870's dwelling moved in 1920 from the Long Point Lighthouse depot near Coinjock.

Coinjock was a federal transfer point for materials and a lighted buoy maintenance facility on the opposite side of Currituck Sound. 

The house was used to house a third keeper and his family, relieving crowding because of the need for additional personnel at the lighthouse. 

In 1917 and 1918 German submarines were offshore sinking American Ships.  With three keepers on site, it was possible for a constant watch to be maintained to look for subs.  Each Keeper would work an eight-hour watch shift.  If one was spotted, it was communicated to the Coast Guard at one of their stations dotting the shoreline.  

The little Keeper's House was opened after restoration in 1995, and now serves as a Lighthouse Gift Shop.  The main Keeper's house is  being worked on now, but the interior restoration is a considerable      undertaking.  Although plaster walls and pine floors have been repaired, vandalized wainscoting replaced, and the mahogany balustrades replicated, reproduction doors and hardware must be made and installed before the interior is finished.

Other historic structures on the grounds include louvered cisterns on
either end of the Keeper's House and a cement cistern beside the gift  shop.  The interior of a two-hole privy near the shop is also on display.  A former storage building now serves as an office for the Lighthouse staff.

It's a really great Lighthouse destination if you're ever on the Outer Banks, don't miss the Currituck Beach Lighthouse.  It's open daily from Easter until Thanksgiving.  If you need any additional information on the Lighthouse they have a  Website at www.outer-banks.nc.us/curritucklight, or you can contact  them at 252-453-4939.

The entrance stairs to the lighthouse

View of the Currituck beach hunt club that is located right next to the lighthouse grounds

Shadow of the lighthouse as seen from the top