Built in 1823, Ocracoke Lighthouse is the second-oldest operating lighthouse in the United States and the oldest on the North Carolina coast. The squat, whitewashed tower rises 65 feet above the village and can be seen from miles out at sea. The lighthouse itself is not open to climb, but the grounds are accessible and the keeper's quarters next door are well preserved. Walking around the base gives a good sense of how small and sturdy the original design was — built to last, and it has.
Ocracoke Lighthouse
A story
In November 1718, Royal Navy Lieutenant Robert Maynard sailed into Ocracoke Inlet with two sloops and ended the career of Edward Teach — Blackbeard — in a ferocious hand-to-hand battle. Maynard reportedly hung the pirate's severed head from his bowsprit as he sailed back to Bath. The lighthouse, built just over a century later, stands less than a mile from where that fight took place.