Outer Banks History Center

Outer Banks History Center The Outer Banks History Center is a regional archival facility in Manteo, NC. Representatives of North Carolina state government communicate via this Web site.

Consequently any communication via this site (whether by a state employee or the ​general public) may be subject to monitoring and disclosure to third parties.

It is turtle nesting season! We are celebrating with a featuring a Loggerhead turtle laying eggs at Bodie Island ca Ju...
05/29/2026

It is turtle nesting season! We are celebrating with a featuring a Loggerhead turtle laying eggs at Bodie Island ca July of 1980!

ORG.5271 - Loggerhead Lays Eggs During Daylight at Bodie Island 07 22 80-OBHC

05/28/2026

A vehicle is seen on the NC-94 causeway crossing Lake Mattamuskeet, September 1944.

In the 1910s and 1920s, the lake was drained for residential and agricultural use but by the mid-1930s ownership had passed to the US government. The lake naturally refilled once the pumping station was no longer in use.

A migratory bird refuge was created shortly thereafter. The area is now a national wildlife refuge.
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ConDev4611D
From the Conservation and Development Photo File, State Archives of NC.

05/28/2026

Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is seen here c. 1937.

If you visit today, you'll see a tower of scaffolding as the landmark undergoes a $20 million restoration.

The project includes a complete repaint, repairing masonry, replicating missing window pediments, restoring iron work, and replacing the light with a replica of a first-order Fresnel lens complete with working clockwork viewable by visitors.

The park will also see considerable landscape enhancements. Work is expected to extend to the end of 2026, but it will be well worth a visit once the project is complete.
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ConDev_L-73
From the Conservation and Development Photo File, State Archives of NC.

Happy ! Please enjoy this photograph from the Aycock Brown Papers! PC.5127 - Oregon Inlet Fishing Center, 7 men, 37 fis...
05/28/2026

Happy ! Please enjoy this photograph from the Aycock Brown Papers!

PC.5127 - Oregon Inlet Fishing Center, 7 men, 37 fish - Aycock Brown Papers, OBHC

This week we are sharing an aerial photograph identified as Stanley Wahab's place at Ocracoke. AV.5124_ - Stanley Wahab...
05/27/2026

This week we are sharing an aerial photograph identified as Stanley Wahab's place at Ocracoke.

AV.5124_ - Stanley Wahabs place at Ocracoke - Roger Meekins Photographs Prior to 1954, OBHC

Happy ! Reminder: the Outer Banks History Center will be closed Monday, May 25th in observance of Memorial Day. ORG.52...
05/22/2026

Happy !

Reminder: the Outer Banks History Center will be closed Monday, May 25th in observance of Memorial Day.

ORG.5271 -Summer drift- 7-14-1980 - Dare County Tourist Bureau Records, J Foster Scott, OBHC

EDIT: Thank you to our followers who have brought to our attention that this 35 mm slide from the Aycock Brown Papers wa...
05/19/2026

EDIT: Thank you to our followers who have brought to our attention that this 35 mm slide from the Aycock Brown Papers was originally scanned inverted! We are unable to edit the image in this post, but you can access the original image at the Outer Banks History Center or the OBHC Flickr page under the Beach of Yesteryear photo album.

today features The Cavalier Motel and the Port-O'Call restaurant! The Cavalier Motor Court was first opened in 1950 by Roy and Dot Wescott, and is still in business today. Though Port O' Call, which originally opened in May of 1965, is no longer operating, the building that once housed the eatery currently sits abandoned in its original location.

PC.5127 - The Cavalier Motel and the Port O'Call, July 1965 - Aycock Brown Papers, OBHC

The Outer Banks History Center will be closed on Monday, May 25th, in observance of the Memorial Day holiday. Please enj...
05/18/2026

The Outer Banks History Center will be closed on Monday, May 25th, in observance of the Memorial Day holiday. Please enjoy these photos of the VFW Memorial Service in 1953 at Waterside Theater.

Photo credit: PC.5127, Aycock Brown Papers.

Today for we are sharing a photograph of a very unlucky visitor ca 1979. ORG.5271 - Bob McCoy of Greensboro Surveys Re...
05/15/2026

Today for we are sharing a photograph of a very unlucky visitor ca 1979.

ORG.5271 - Bob McCoy of Greensboro Surveys Remains of 77 Scout International Caught by Tide on Ocracoke Island - 10/03/1979 - OBHC

Today we are throwing things back to May of 1954 in Stumpy Point! Identified as: Lucy Best, Edie Midgett, Olive Payne,...
05/14/2026

Today we are throwing things back to May of 1954 in Stumpy Point!

Identified as: Lucy Best, Edie Midgett, Olive Payne, and Melissa Midgett

AV.5124.7-001 - Women hanging net in Dick Best's yard at Stumpy Point, May 1954 - Roger Meekins Photographs, OBHC

Address

1 Festival Park Blvd/PO Box 250
Manteo, NC
27954

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 2pm
Tuesday 9am - 2pm
Wednesday 9am - 2pm
Thursday 9am - 2pm
Friday 9am - 2pm

Telephone

+2524235240

Website

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