Ocracoke Light

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title: "Ocracoke Light" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["lighthouses-completed-in-1823", "buildings-and-structures-in-hyde-county,-north-carolina", "lighthouses-on-the-national-register-of-historic-places-in-north-carolina", "outer-banks", "tourist-attractions-in-hyde-county,-north-carolina", "national-register-of-historic-places-in-hyde-county,-north-carolina", "individually-listed-contributing-properties-to-historic-districts-on-the-national-register-in-north-carolina", "1823-establishments-in-north-carolina"] description: "Lighthouse in North Carolina, United States" topic_path: "general/lighthouses-completed-in-1823" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocracoke_Light" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Lighthouse in North Carolina, United States ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox lighthouse"]

Field	Value
image_name	Ocracoke island lighthouse img 0478.jpg
location	SR 1326, Ocracoke Island, Ocracoke, North Carolina
coordinates
yearbuilt	1823
yearlit	August 15, 1824 (current tower)
automated	1955
marking	White
lens	4th order Fresnel lens
installed 1854
foundation	Dressed stone / timber
construction	Brick with mortar surface
shape	Conical
height	76 ft
focalheight	75 ft
range	15 nmi
characteristic	Fixed white
fogsignal	none
module	{{Infobox NRHP
embed	yes
name	Ocracoke Light Station
built	1823
architect	Noah Porter
added	November 25, 1977
area	2 acre
refnum	77000110
::

| image_name = Ocracoke island lighthouse img 0478.jpg | location = SR 1326, Ocracoke Island, Ocracoke, North Carolina | coordinates = | yearbuilt = 1823 | yearlit = August 15, 1824 (current tower) | automated = 1955 | marking = White | lens = 4th order Fresnel lens installed 1854 | foundation = Dressed stone / timber | construction = Brick with mortar surface | shape = Conical | height = 76 ft | focalheight = 75 ft | range = 15 nmi | characteristic = Fixed white | fogsignal = none | module={{Infobox NRHP | embed = yes | name = Ocracoke Light Station | built = 1823 | architect = Noah Porter | added = November 25, 1977 | area = 2 acre | refnum = 77000110 Ocracoke Light was built in Hyde County, on Ocracoke Island, Ocracoke, North Carolina in 1823 by Massachusetts builder Noah Porter. The lighthouse stands 75 ft tall. Its diameter narrows from 25 ft at the base to 12 ft at its peak. The lighthouse was built to help guide ships through Ocracoke Inlet into Pamlico Sound.

In 1864, Confederate troops dismantled the fourth-order Fresnel Lens, but Union forces later restored it.

Ocracoke Light is the oldest operating light station in North Carolina and the second oldest lighthouse still standing in the state. The lighthouse was automated in 1955. During the summer months when there is a U.S. National Park Ranger on duty, visitors may access the base of the lighthouse. Access to the top of the lighthouse is not allowed due to the simple steel spiral staircase being safe only for maintenance activity.

However, this is not the original staircase; the original staircase was a wooden step spiral built into the inside of the exterior wall. This was removed during the 1950s due to excessive rotting to the boards and a lacking necessity for a substantial staircase because of the automation of the light. The wooden stairs were removed and the holes in the all-brick lighthouse were cemented closed.

The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977 as Ocracoke Light Station.

Controversy

Various claims have been made about the light, including "the Ocracoke Light is the second oldest operating lighthouse in the nation," from the National Park Service. The original 1795 construction a mile away would qualify only as fifth oldest and the current 1823 tower is about twelfth oldest. Ocracoke Lighthouse with the Milky Way Galaxy.jpg|Ocracoke Lighthouse with the Milky Way Galaxy Image:OcracokeLighthouseSilverLake.JPG|Ocracoke Lighthouse and Silver Lake from Ocracoke National Park Museum Image:USCGOcracoke.jpg|U.S. Coast Guard Archive

References

References

1. [http://www.lib.unc.edu/ncc/ref/resources/tlth.html Talk Like A Tarheel] {{Webarchive. link. (2013-06-22 , from the North Carolina Collection's website at the [[University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill]]. Retrieved 2013-02-05.)
2. "The Ocracoke Light Station". National Park Service.
3. {{cite uscgll. 2. 2009. 6
4. {{cite uscghist. NC
5. {{NRISref. 2009a

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::