Currituck Beach Lighthouse Complex (Boundary Increase)

Located just south of Corolla in the northernmost part of North Carolina's Outer Banks, this lighthouse complex was established in 1873 and was the last lighthouse built on the Outer Banks. The 30.58-acre tract includes about five acres of fenced grounds holding the buildings, with the rest in maritime forest, dunes, oceanfront and marsh along Currituck Sound. The 162-foot unpainted red brick tower, built 1873-1875, holds a first order Fresnel lens and is joined to a brick office. Nearby are the 1876 Stick Style keepers' duplex with two rainwater cisterns, a storehouse, and a small keeper's house moved from Long Point Station in 1920. The complex operated under federal lighthouse authorities until 1939, and its grounds have remained largely intact since the government bought them. The added acreage recognizes the natural landscape that frames the buildings and screens them from nearby development. Restoration in the 1980s and 1990s returned the buildings to use for visitors.