The Ocracoke Preservation Society has purchased the old Island Inn and embarked on a plan to restore the original part of the structure, the 1901 Odd Fellows Lodge, as a visitor center.
A Search for Answers in Rare Whale’s Death
Pat Garber of Ocracoke shares her firsthand account of the necropsy earlier this year of a rare Gervais’ beaked whale that stranded and died on the beach at Ocracoke Island.
Our Coast’s People: Ocracoke’s Two Blanches
Named after the late Blanche Howard Joliff of Ocracoke, the handcrafted fishing boat Blanche has changed hands many times since 1934 and is now an outdoor exhibit at the Ocracoke Preservation Society Museum.
Our Coast’s History: Crew of the Bedfordshire
A solemn observance held Friday at Ocracoke’s British Cemetery honored the men of the H.M.T. Bedfordshire who died on May 11, 1942, in a World War II battle off the N.C. coast, but a few islanders got to know some of the crew before their deaths.
Operation Drum Roll: Ocracoke During WWII
World War II battles off the N.C. coast were for years kept secret from most of the American public, but Ocracoke residents saw firsthand the horrors of and the U.S. response to the Germans’ deadly Operation Drum Roll.
Our Coast’s People: Chester Lynn
He has ancestors that were Blackbeard’s crewmen and pewter plates believed to have once belonged to the notorious pirate –Chester Lynn of Ocracoke has deep knowledge of island history and a passion for figs.
Our Coast’s People: Della Gaskill of Ocracoke
Eighty-year-old Ocracoke native Della Gaskill has seen great changes on the island, and the recently honored preservationist shares her memories of the way things used to be.
Coastal Sketch: Oyster Ladies of Ocracoke
Two Ocracoke women plow the waters of Pamlico Sound at their Devil Shoals Oyster Farm for the tasty bivalve that they sell to local restaurants.
A Humdinger Winter for Hummers
The number of hummingbirds wintering in North Carolina is dramatically increasing. These hummers seem to prefer coastal North Carolina where the Gulf Stream keeps temperatures warmer.
The Mail Boat Aleta: Ocracoke’s Lifeline
Before email, before Instagram, mail to and from the islands of our coast went by boat. This is the story of one of those boats, the Aleta, which for almost 20 years was Ocracoke’s connection to the rest of the world.
What Causes Dolphin, Whale Strandings?
Experts debate what causes dolphins and whales to wash up on shores dead, like the three bottlenose dolphins that were stranded on Ocracoke Island during the winter of 2013-14.
The Plasticized Ocean
The North Atlantic Gyre, a large system of rotating currents, spins off the N.C. coast. Within its center, drawn in by the currents, lies a plastic soup of garbage that threatens marine life.
Coastal Sketch: Earl O’Neal
This writer and historian of Ocracoke Island tells what it was like growing up there as a boy. “What a story,” he says, “if only the live oaks could talk.”
A Ringside Seat to an Ancient Ritual
Bird watchers gather on Ocracoke each fall to scan the skies for migrating kestrels, hawks and other raptors.
The Plight of the Monarchs
Soon the monarch butterflies will begin their fall migration along Eastern North Carolina. However, some experts say this keystone species is in serious trouble.
Miss Blanche of Ocracoke
Blanche Howard Jolliff is 94 and an island treasure. She remembers, for instance, the shipwreck that led to the first road on Ocracoke and the first road collision.
