Well-known surfboard shaper Dave Rohde of Kitty Hawk is also renowned as an expert fisherman and guide, and he credits fishing for saving him from self-destruction.
Our Coast
The other coup d’état: Remembering New Bern in 1898
Historian David Cecelski uses old newspaper clippings to show how Wilmington’s bloody takeover was not the only example of the state’s well organized and propaganda-fueled 1880s-1890s white supremacy movement.
When gathering wild pocosin cranberries was profitable
Colonial accounts of what is now Dare County make no mention of wild cranberries, but the holiday tradition is believed to have long existed in the pocosin and reporting on the crop dates back to the 19th century.
The Last Days of the East Dismal Swamp
Historian David Cecelski created what he called an online history exhibit featuring 40 images illustrating the last decades of an ancient swamp forest that was once located on the North Carolina coast.
Tim Still’s no beach bum; his brand of lures is catching on
The Havelock resident, former college and pro baseball player and newspaper sports writer has turned his love of fishing into a growing enterprise.
Frank Stick finds success, designs signature Banks cottage
As the artist-turned-developer nears retirement age, his eye for opportunity leads to steadier finances, a new development project, a strained business relationship with his son, and the creation of another national park.
A future tied to tourism: Stick presses for national park
Fourth in a special series: Frank Stick’s Outer Banks development dreams having been largely dashed by the Great Depression and a hurricane, the conservationist landowner launched his calculated campaign to establish a seashore attraction.
Scuttled Confederate ship had served both sides in Civil War
The steamboat scuttled at Cobb Point near Elizabeth City by its Confederate captain during winter 1862 had previously served as a Union vessel.
‘Faith In the Future’: Troubles befall Virginia Dare Shores
In the third installment of our special series, the artist-turned-developer who dreamed of bringing tourists and wealth to the Outer Banks in the 1920s sees his hopes nearly dashed — and then came the Great Depression.
James City first site of new African American Heritage Tour
The tour, still under development to highlight the region’s African American heritage, is a partnership of the nonprofit Eastern Carolina Foundation for Equity and Equality and the National Park Service.
‘Millions Have Been Made’: Frank Stick changes careers
Second in our series: Frank Stick was looking to land more than a few bluefish when he visited the Outer Banks in the 1920s, the illustrator and sportsman saw opportunity here.
Uncovering the improbable tale of multifaceted Frank Stick
New series: Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Gil Gaul dives into newspaper clippings, archives and other sources to reveal the complex story of the New Jersey artist, outdoorsman, developer and speculator who filled miles of Outer Banks beaches with hundreds of houses.
Wharf pilings and sawdust: Visiting Hyde’s lost villages
Drawing from maps created by a teacher and his students, historian David Cecelski aims to get a feel for the lumber mill villages in Hyde County that have long since disappeared.
Edenton’s history ‘an everyday part of life’ for its residents
The Chowan County town of 5,000 boasts one of the largest groups of historic buildings in North Carolina, numerous notable figures from the past and the distinction of creating the state’s the historic preservation movement.
Outrigger club completes second leg of coastal NC trek
Wrightsville Beach Outrigger Canoe Club paddlers recently completed a three-day, 125-mile journey from Swansboro to Cape Hatteras in a traditional oceangoing Polynesian canoe to raise awareness of risks to water quality.
Road to Makatoka: Logging the Green Swamp, 1910-1930
Early 20th century photographs of the Waccamaw Lumber Co.’s operations in Columbus and Brunswick counties also depict an almost Wild West-like society of loggers and lumbermen.