WHO WE ARE

The Outer Banks Lighthouse Society actively supports all North Carolina Lighthouses. Well known in the lighthouse community, we are often called upon to help in various ways such as serving as consultants for educational programs including PBS, The History Channel, The Discovery Channel, and other media. The society receives dozens of monthly requests for information concerning NC's lighthouses. All projects are carried out thanks to the dedication of our volunteers. Our long list of accomplishments continues to grow.

 

From its inception, the Outer Banks Lighthouse Society has been a “different” organization. We do not own a lighthouse, we do not have a permanent office at a light station, we do not seek recognition from the media for our accomplishments. Our goals have always been ones of educational value. We believe that with awareness comes caring.

 

We have published two books on keepers’ families, hosted the largest keepers’ descendants' gathering in America, produced  brochures, published an award-winning historically-based newsletter since 1994, answered hundreds of requests from students and teachers, and held an annual event to gather our members at a North Carolina lighthouse. We’ve been in the trenches when heated debates raged for years about relocating the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. We manned our personal phones and computers to voice strong support for the Outer Banks Conservationists in their struggle to win ownership of the Currituck Beach Lighthouse. We penned dozens of letters and attended countless meetings to keep the Bodie Island first order Fresnel lens in the tower instead of being removed and lost forever. These projects are what we are about.

 

It has been a bumpy journey at times, yes, but it also has been a great one built on camaraderie. Our group is like a family who works together in a common cause to help our lighthouses remain preserved. It has taken patience, persistence, and faith. We shall continue our quest to help these significant historic sites that call to us across sea and time.