Currituck Beach Lighthouse

Year Built

1875

Cost

$178,000

Type

Conical

Height

162 feet

Location

Corolla

Automated Year

1939

First Lit

1875

Lens Type

First-order Fresnel lens

Fog Signal

None

Year Deactivated

Active

Color

Natural red brick with black lantern

Last Keeper - Date

William James Tate (1937 – 1939)

Description

During periods of high winds or extreme weather the outside gallery or the entire lighthouse tower may be closed to climbers.

Brief History

•  On November 5, 1886, the keeper and his two assistants, who were in the lantern room, felt an earthquake shake the tower.
•  1920: An 1870's dwelling was moved from the Long Point Lighthouse Station to the site as a smaller keeper's residence.
•  Currituck Beach Lighthouse was automated in 1939, when the U.S. Coast Guard absorbed the U.S. Lighthouse Service, and resident keepers were no longer needed.
•  The National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000 made several lighthouses, including Currituck Lighthouse, available to federal, state, and local agencies.
•  On 17 October 2003 the deed to the lighthouse was transferred to the Outer Banks Conservationists, Inc.