History of Hatteras
Hatteras Island was first discovered by the Algonquin tribes of Croatan Indians who inhabited the land before 1497 when Amerigo Vespucci anchored his ship there. The island was uninhabited by the Western world again until 1524 when the French and Spanish landed to mine gold and then in 1584 when Sir Walter Raleigh colonized the outer banks at the order of Queen Elizabeth the first. Attempts to settle on the outer banks of North Carolina were largely unsuccessful and life here didn’t settle down until 1729 after Blackbeard the pirate and the Indians left or died and British Monarchy resumed rule.
Between 1776 and 1783 the War for Independence broke out as tensions between the British rulers and Carolinians came to a head, with the latter winning outright.
Today tourists visit the Graveyard of the Atlantic; a museum in southern Hatteras Island holding the information and stories behind around 600 ships that were wrecked along the outer banks shores. Incredibly, when the tides go out sometimes it’s possible to still see some of these shipwrecks and standing staring at them really fills you with a sense of the intensely interesting history surrounding the Island.
In 1883 the postal service gained recognition and changed the names of several towns on Hatteras Island, reportedly because the previous were too confusing. The towns as they are now known are called ‘Rodanthe’, ‘Waves’ and ‘Salvo. Later on, 1903 was to mark a particularly prominent historical event for the outer banks and particularly the town of Kitty Hawks. This was the year that the Wright brothers Orville and Wilbur made the first powered flight in an airplane. Today a large granite monument commemorating their life and achievements sits at Kitty Hawk, which is open to the public for viewing.
One of the most famous historical sites which incorporates the coastal feel of Hatteras Island is the Pea Island Life-Saving Station; the first of its kind to encompass a crew who were all black. Similarly, Chicomacomico Life-Saving Station holds a lot of Rodanthe’s shoreline history (including the rescue of the people on the Mirlo tanker which was torpedoed during the First World War) and serves as a museum to the public.
Hatteras Island is a destination with an intriguing history, from pirates to the first airplane flight, to two World Wars. If you’re a vacationer with a deep interest in the places that you visit and a penchant for museums and galleries then Cape Hatteras is the one for you.
