Roanoke Island

Nestled between the Outer Banks and the North Carolina mainland, Roanoke Island is one of the most historic places in America. People sometimes confuse our island's history with that of Jamestown, Virginia, where the first permanent English colony thrived in the early 17th century. The confusion between the two revolves around the word "permanent." Roanoke Island is the site of England's earliest attempts to plant a permanent colony in the New World. Beginning in 1584, Sir Walter Raleigh dispatched a series of voyages carrying courageous souls to settle in the New World. These journeys culminated in a colony of 117 men, women, and children, sent here in 1587, only to disappear mysteriously (see our History chapter); hence the lack of "permanence." The Lost Colony of Roanoke Island remains a puzzle. Theories concerning the colonists' fate abound, but until archaeologists dig up some real proof, we'll continue to wonder what really happened to these early settlers.

For those who appreciate concrete links to the past, relics have been retrieved from the waters surrounding Roanoke Island-artifacts that may provide clues to centuries-old puzzles. Numerous locals and archaeologists alike have combed the island for treasures from the Native American culture, earliest English settlements, and Civil War times (see our Historychapter for more information on these Roanoke Island highlights). Old English coins, a powder horn, a vial of quicksilver, weapons, bottles, iron fragments, pottery, and arrowheads have been discovered here. In the winter of 1998-99, a strong nor'easter blew so much water out of the sound that some creek beds and sound bottoms were exposed for the first time in many decades. Locals harvested numerous arrowheads from the exposed muddy tracts. Some remnants can be seen at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site on the north end of the island (see our Attractions chapter), while others found their way into personal collections. Roanoke Island native Hubby Bliven opened The Roanoke Heritage Gallery and Museum on the island mostly with artifacts he's been collecting since his youth.

Roanoke Island tends to bring out the nature lover in all of us. In the spring, summer, and fall, early mornings and late afternoons find marsh rabbits nibbling roadside grasses. Red-winged black birds, looking much like holiday ornaments, adorn the bushes alongside the road. They really stand out in winter, when the leaves have left trees barren. Scan the creeks in the warm months, just before entering Roanoke Island from the west, and you can see turtles lined like soldiers on half-sunken logs and along the banks. Crossing the Washington Baum Bridge from the east, we regularly spot osprey flying overhead, clutching dangling snakes or fish in their claws. (Don't take your eyes off the road too long, and definitely do not stop on the bridge!) Of course, a wide variety of fish, such as spot, croaker, pigfish, sea mullet, sheepshead, and stripers, inhabit the surrounding waters. Boats and recreational water vehicles of all sorts share the sounds and bays in fair weather.

By land, you can walk back into time at Roanoke Island Festival Park, formerly the Elizabeth II State Historic Site in Manteo. You can also examine history at Fort Raleigh. Make sure to explore the park's nature path, the Thomas Hariot Trail. Hariot, a 16th-century author, wrote the first book about the New World in Elizabethan English. His book is a study of the Native Americans and a survey of the area's natural resources. Only six copies of his literary treatise are said to exist.

Getting Here

Roanoke Island is west of Nags Head and due east of Williamston, North Carolina. It certainly is easier and quicker to get here now than it was centuries or even decades ago due to the construction of several bridges and new highways. While you won't have to forge a path through reeds, as our ancestors did, you still can reach the island by water. If a car is your mode of transportation, you can choose from at least four routes; all are scenic. Some wend through more remote regions than others. One two-lane road, U.S. Highway 64/264, has always carried all the local traffic plus vacationer traffic right down the spine of Roanoke Island, creating backups and bottlenecks. In 2002 a 5mile bridge came into service. This bridge, the longest in the state, steers vacationer traffic and much of the local traffic away from the island. One end of the bridge is in Manns Harbor and the other is at the Manteo-Wanchese junction, which leads right to the beaches of the Outer Banks. If you wish to travel by air, the Dare County Regional Airport is on the north end of Roanoke Island. Private pilots fly into this airport daily and charter services are available. It's not unusual to see visitors riding in on bicycles. The Outer Banks's flat terrain makes for excellent bicycle touring. For specific routes and directions see our Getting Here, Getting Around chapter.

Island Economy and Tourism

At the heart of Roanoke Island life is the inhabitants' desire to preserve a small- town feeling while finding ways to make a living. Islanders mostly work in tourist- and service-oriented businesses, at fishing- related jobs, as writers and artists, in local government, and in the public school system.

Roanoke Island has history to market. Our Attractions chapter describes the island's top sites: the Elizabethan Gardens, the North Carolina Aquarium, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, the Outer Banks History Center, Roanoke Island Festival Park, the North Carolina Maritime Museum, and The Lost Colony outdoor drama.

The Outer Banks History Center, housed at Roanoke Island Festival Park (see our Arts and Culture chapter), is a font of Roanoke Island lore and has old photos and area maps on display.

The main branch of the Dare County Library on US 64, just across from Manteo Elementary School, is another good source for more island information. For overall Outer Banks information, such as maps, brochures, and other local data, stop in at the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau on US 64/264. The staff is friendly and helpful, and there's even a convenient drive-through window.

Talk with some of our old-timers for some really entertaining inside information. Conversation with lifelong locals is bound to reveal a colorful tale or two. Pick up a copy of Memories of Manteo and Roanoke Island, N.C., by Suzanne Tate as told by the late Cora Mae Basnight, if you're unable to make a personal connection. This oral history, from the mouth of a much-loved native (and late mother of the current president pro tem of the North Carolina Senate, Marc Basnight), is a delightful book accented with interesting photographs. Ms. Basnight, according to Tate's book, held the record for playing the same role longer than any actress in American Theater, that of Agona, a Native American woman, in The Lost Colony. Many consider her the quintessential Agona. Another fantastic, more thorough history of the town and island is Manteo, A Roanoke Island Town, by Angel Ellis Khoury. It's filled with fascinating stories, anecdotes, and facts about this area.

Lots of exciting tales revolve around The Lost Colony, the historic outdoor drama that outlines the story of the first English settlement and its disappearance. Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paul Green wrote the drama, which debuted in 1937. It has played a major role in the lives of local folk ever since (see our Arts and Culture chapter). In 1997 the production observed its 60th anniversary, drawing former Lost Colony thespians and production members the world over to reminisce and celebrate the occasion. In 1998 a stunning $2 million renovation to the historic Waterside Theatre was completed.

Generations of families grew up acting in the annual play. From representing the infant Virginia Dare to playing the role of Gov. John White or Chief Manteo, many a Roanoke Island resident nurtured a love of history through the play and a love of theater as a result. Andy Griffith, who played Sir Walter Raleigh in his first acting stint, is a Roanoke Island resident.

William S. Powell's Paradise Preserved is the definitive source for the history of the Roanoke Island Historical Association, perpetuators of the historic play. Powell offers an exciting account of the creative endeavors of Mrs. Mabel Evans Jones, the author and producer of local pageants on Roanoke Island that predate Green's play. Evans Jones, the former Superintendent of Schools in Dare County, ran a summer arts camp on the island in the early 1920s. As it is with an archaeologist, the more you dig, the more you're likely to uncover something concerning Roanoke Island's roots and tales of the people who called the island home.

Yesteryear and Today

rior to the settling of Manteo in the 1860s, islanders had established two sparsely populated residential settlements on Roanoke Island called the Upper End and the Lower End. The Upper End referred to the north end of Roanoke Island, and the Lower End described the area that is now called Wanchese. A third settlement was formed by former slaves and has been referred to as California. Manteo and the village of Wanchese were named after two Native Americans who befriended the early English explorers.

In 1999 the town of Manteo celebrated its centennial. Manteo became Dare County's seat in 1870 and was incorporated as a town in 1899. Islanders soon erected the first courthouse and established a post office. The white-columned brick courthouse that stands in downtown Manteo today was built in 1904, replacing the original wooden structure. One of the earliest private homes built on the Upper End in the 1780s was the Etheridge home, also referred to as Drinkwater's Folley. It was moved in the 1930s from a wooded area between Heritage Point and the Elizabethan Gardens to its present location on US 64 at the Morrison Grove turnoff. Another private home that bears note is the 1872 Colonial-style dwelling built in Manteo that later became the Tranquil House, whose rooms entertained Thomas Edison and radio pioneer Reginald Fessenden. The Tranquil House also did a tour of duty as a barracks during World War II. The original Tranquil House is gone now, but the name lives on at a different location. Today the Tranquil House Inn operates in downtown Manteo on The Waterfront. The Tranquil House is built in the style of 19th-century Outer Banks inns, but it has 21st-century conveniences, including an in-house, world-class restaurant, 1587.

In the late 1800s Roanoke Island served as a prominent port. Large boats from the Old Dominion Steamline of Norfolk, Virginia, made daily stops on the west end of the island at Skyco (between Manteo and Wanchese), while Manteo's Shallowbag Bay was a busy port for smaller boats. In 1906 Shallowbag Bay was dredged, allowing access to larger boats, such as the river steamer Trenton. For nearly 20 years, mail, freight, and passengers arrived daily on this vessel.

As new infrastructure tied the island to other areas, Roanoke Island became less remote. In 1928 the Washington Baum Bridge was completed, linking Roanoke Island to the Outer Banks beaches. Two years later the Wright Memorial Bridge was constructed to tie those beaches to Currituck from the north. New roads were built from Elizabeth City and Manteo, and as the automobile became more popular, boat usage declined somewhat. Today around 4,145 residents make their home on Roanoke Island.

Fire ravaged the Manteo waterfront five times in the 20th century. The presence of oil storage tanks caused great problems when the town caught fire. All that was available to put out the early fires was an old-fashioned bucket brigade, with volunteers forming a line and handing buckets of water from one person to another. During the course of these five fires, various sections of town were destroyed, including the old Hotel Roanoke. The only mercantile building to survive all the fires is the little white building on Budleigh Street, where E. R. Midgett Insurance now operates. Adequate fire-fighting equipment, a modern water system, and brick construction were introduced to the town when rebuilding began in the 1930s.

Manteo continues to be the hub for Dare County's business. From 1983 through 1987, major renovations took place in the town as part of America's Quadricentennial. Fifteen hundred live oaks and flowering crape myrtle trees were planted on the island's main corridor along US 64. Buildings and streets were restored, bringing new glory to the town.

On July 13, 1984, Manteo entertained Princess Anne of England, North Carolina Gov. James B. Hunt Jr., and newsman Walter Cronkite as part of America's 400th Anniversary Celebration. A memorial stone on the waterfront commemorates the event.

Manteo today reflects its history. The downtown Manteo Waterfront complex featuring shops, restaurants, and private residences is built in old-style architecture. You can sit at outdoor picnic tables or benches along the docks or in one of the window-lined restaurants and view the Elizabeth II (see our Attractions chapter), which is berthed across the bay from the Manteo waterfront at Roanoke Island Festival Park. Reminders of Native American and English heritages are evident in many of the town's street names, including Ananias Dare, Wingina, Sir Walter Raleigh, Queen Elizabeth, Essex, and Uppowac. These streets of historic Manteo have a number of structures worth noting.

In Manteo proper on Budleigh Street, you'll find the English Tudor-style Pioneer Theatre, the oldest family-operated movie theater in the United States, which celebrated its 70th year in 2004 (see our Attractions chapter). Admission is only $5.00. The Theodore S. Meekins house on Sir Walter Raleigh Street that now operates as the White Doe Inn (see our Accommodations chapter) is one of Manteo's most elegant buildings. The basic structure of the house was built before 1900. Featuring long porches and bowed windows in its turrets, the white, three- storied inn is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. A reference for historic Manteo sites is The Manteo Walking Tour, available at the Manteo branch of the Dare County Library on US 64 or in local bookshops.

There are only about 1,050 residents in Manteo. The town continues to grow as it annexes outlying properties, and as far as new building, Manteo proper-the historic downtown area-is fairly well developed, with only a few select lots left. People are drawn to the charm, the quaintness, and the small-town atmosphere here. If there is any significant future growth to Manteo, which is currently home to five churches and four schools, expansion would be to the south, but that's very indefinite.

Wanchese

Wanchese, on the southern end of Roanoke Island, has a more isolated feel than Manteo. For years it has operated as a fishing port. Drive the streets and you'll see wooden houses, some built 80 to 100 years ago, that have been lovingly maintained. In many backyards you still find boats in various sizes and states of repair, linking their owners with the ever- important sea and sounds.

Many old seagoing vessels fill Wanchese Harbor, living out their last days in a place generations of fishermen have used as a regular point of departure. While time will always bring change in the fishing industry-change in species, seafood quantities, boat styles, and government regulations-in Wanchese today, you can track family occupations established long ago when mariners navigated solely by the stars. Still living are at least three or four generations of anglers-men and women alike-from families who have at one time or another called Wanchese home. The Tilletts, Baums, and Etheridges, names you'll notice a lot on the Outer Banks, are just a few. Some have crossed over from commercial fishing to become sport fishermen, and many work as boat builders.

Today, as many as 50 fishing trawlers from up and down the East Coast use Wanchese Harbor, as do hundreds of smaller commercial and sportfishing boats. From the village several seafood companies ship fish all over the country. Most seafood caught in Dare County goes through Wanchese and around 24 million pounds are landed in Wanchese annually. Boats fish North Carolina's offshore and inshore waters and depart Wanchese Harbor to fish off New England in the winter. On the east side of the harbor is the state- owned Wanchese Seafood Industrial Park, where seafood and marine-related industries are based (see our Attractions chapter). The park features boat-maintenance facilities, seafood plants, boatbuilders, and state fisheries operations.

Wanchese has an estimated population of 1,527 residents. An average of only three to four homes and/or buildable lots becomes available annually. There is plenty of undeveloped, buildable land in Wanchese, but it is privately owned.

Boat Building

A description of Roanoke Island would be incomplete without a nod to a very special livelihood shared by many native islanders. Boatbuilding was and continues to be a major part of life on Roanoke Island. From the small bateau put together in a backyard shed to the 72foot yachts constructed at major boat- building operations, Manteo and Wanchese share in this rich heritage.

In 1998 the North Carolina Maritime Museum opened in the old George Washington Creef Boathouse on the Manteo waterfront as a tribute to the area's boat- building heritage. Here, you can watch old crafts being restored and view a variety of boat exhibits.

George and Benjamin Creef operated the facility as the Manteo Machine Shop and Railways in the 19th century. The shop was built in 1884. Boats were hauled out of the water and serviced there. At this location "Uncle Wash" Creef built the first shad boat, now documented as one of the most important fishing vessels of its time because its design allowed it to effectively work nets and carry weight and still ride well in the water. Winters of the past found many fishermen holed up in shops crafting juniper vessels that took them farther from home than many had ever imagined. The Sharpie and the Shallowbag Shad Boat were designed and built in Manteo.

Boats are still built on Roanoke Island-huge, sleek vessels with their hulls buffed to a sun-splintering shine. Each spring these brand-new, 50-foot-plus boats emerge from private building barns and are tugged slowly down the highway to Wanchese to be put in the water for the first time. On board the boat, members of the construction crew carefully lift power lines as their vessel moves down the road, invariably delaying traffic. Smiles wreathe the faces of the crew: After six to eight months of hammering, sanding, and painting, they are ready to christen the fruit of their labor. It is a tense time, too, for no one really relaxes until everyone sees that the boat sits and moves "just right" in the water.