The Cape Hatteras Light Station Relocation Project of Buxton, North Carolina, was named the 2000 Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement (OCEA) by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). The Cape Hatteras Light Station is now a National Historic Landmark as well as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, and it is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Presented to the owner of the project, the National Park Service (NPS), at a gala celebration in Washington, D.C., the award recognizes the project for its engineering ingenuity and conservation.

"The relocation of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is a huge milestone in American history, demonstrating that engineering ingenuity and technical skills can be used to not only ensure the long-term stability of this prominent cultural icon, but also to preserve a way of life for residents dependent on tourism for their livelihood," said ASCE President Delon Hampton, PH.D., P.E.

"Besides being an incredible engineering feat, this project spoke volumes about the American spirit. Our generation stepped up to the challenge in the same manner that the Lighthouse Keepers stepped up to the challenge of making the Nation's coastline safe for people who made their living by the sea," said Cape Hatteras National Seashore Superintendent Francis Peltier. "We have, by our actions, passed on to future generations a vessel of the American experience, an icon of what's best about the American character, a tangible object that our grandchildren and their children can visit and touch. We have provided a window through which they can view the greatness of our national past and come to know who we are as a people and a nation."

The contractor, International Chimney Corporation of Buffalo, NY, led the unique team of engineers, construction workers, movers, and environmentalists to ensure the safe move of the lighthouse 2,900 feet to the southwest in 23 days during summer 1999. The beacon is once again 1,600 feet from the shoreline, and reopened for climbing May 26, 2000.

Images of Interest: "Bodie Island masking problems; Bodie Island corrosion in the lantern room; Cape Hatteras Relocation Wins Award--all 3 photos by Bruce Roberts

Hatteras Keepers Descendants
Homecoming Planned for May 2001
August 4, 2000
Cheryl Roberts
HOMECOMING
Outer Banks, NC

To celebrate the continuing history of this lighthouse, the Outer Banks Lighthouse Society (OBLHS) is organizing a homecoming event May 4,5,6, 2001 for Keepers descendants who will gather for a special family weekend and have the opportunity to climb the famous lighthouse in its new location. In conjunction with the Hatteras Keepers Descendants Homecoming, the NPS is planning a light station rededication on the evening of May 5, 2001 to which the public is invited.

Media inquiries about the Hatteras Keepers Descendants Homecoming should be directed to Bruce Roberts. Direct descendants interested in receiving an invitation and sharing information on a Keeper's family can email [email protected] [general inquiries should be directed to [email protected]], or call 252/995-6891. Descendants, donors, and interested individuals may write the executive planning committee at Hatteras Keepers Descendants Homecoming at P.O. Box 550 Buxton, NC 27920.

Lighthouse Tour

Driving Directions to all North Carolina's Lighthouses
May 6, 2000
Cheryl Roberts
ANNOUNCEMENT
MOREHEAD CITY, NC

Most people visiting the Outer Banks of North Carolina want ot visit at least one of the lighthouses. The Outer Banks Lighthouse Society has prepared a Driving Tour from north to south along coastal North Carolina.

Of the existing towers you have a choice of seven lighthouses to visit, and you can see the ruins of an eighth light. Theses lighthouses are so interesting days can be spent in the surrounding area of each one. You are invited to visit a lighthouse soon.

After a long and tedious legal process, the U.S. General Services Administration officially transferred the Bodie Island Lighthouse from the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) to the National Park Service (NPS) on July 13, 2000. The USCG will maintain the lighting apparatus, as Bodie Island remains an active aid to navigation.

Photos Courtesy of Bruce Roberts

The 1872 black and white banded lighthouse, the third tower on Bodie Island, stands 156 feet tall, and is situated on the northern end of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. Surrounded by park service land, this lighthouse and its pastoral setting has gained in popularity in recent years, now hosting over 2,000 visitors a day. The NPS restored the Double Keepers Quarters during the 1990s and it now serves as a bookstore and museum.

Photos Courtesy of Bruce Roberts

In 1872, the present tower was completed one and one-half miles to the north of the first two sites, and it has been hailed as one of America's finest lighthouses. Today, however, aging mortar and ironwork threaten its future. The same restoration work completed on the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in 1990-91 by the National Park Service and the Currituck Beach Lighthouse in 1999-2000 by the Outer Banks Conservationists, Inc., is direly needed at Bodie Island. As a precautionary measure, the NPS has installed a safety fence to keep visitors from walking directly under the failing ironwork at the top of the tower. The Outer Banks Lighthouse Society has supported an effort to gain restoration funding as soon as possible. The NPS requested $1.7 million to completely restore the lighthouse, but the funding request may not make the President's 2002 budget. Regional NPS officials at the Atlanta district headquarters report that the restoration project has not been chosen as a priority park budget item.

An effort continues to gain the restoration funds to completely restore Bodie Island Lighthouse.

Hatteras Lighthouse
Condition Monitored After Move
August 4, 2000
Cheryl Roberts
UPDATE
Outer Banks, NC

Recently, the Hatteras Lighthouse was given a structural review and announced tall and strong on its new foundation. The National Park Service, following completion of the light station relocation, continues to have the lighthouse monitored at regular intervals to check for any measurable movement or tilt that may result from the new foundation construction. There has been no measurable movement of the tower. All three of the triangulation location points at the top have fallen within a calculated center circle with a radius of 0.372 inches (smaller than a quarter). Very tall structures like the Empire State Building may vary as much as several feet at the top.

Attendance records are being set with as many as 3,400 people climbing the lighthouse in one day. The lighthouse is open for entry, dependent upon weather conditions and the availability of volunteers, from 10 AM to 4 PM daily through Labor Day, and from 10 AM to 2 PM daily to Columbus Day when it will be closed for the season.

May 7, 2000
Staff Report
FACTS
OUTER BANKS, NC