A tiny Z-scale model train operated by Mike Basher of Basher and Sons Hobbies rounds the bend during an appearance earlier this month at the 30th annual John Costlow Train Show at the North Carolina Maritime Museum Harvey W. Smith Watercraft Center in Beaufort. The three-day show included model train layouts of various scales, including working antiques. Photo: Mark Hibbs
history
Flying colors over Radio Island
A rainbow reaches skyward from the Newport River as viewed from the marsh at Radio Island following Sunday showers. The island was formed by the placement of dredge spoils from an early channel-deepening project at the Morehead City port in the 1930s and takes its name from Carteret Broadcasting Co.’s WMBL, which began broadcasting in 1947 at 740 kHz. Photo: Mark Hibbs
Coastal commission lawyer: CAMA a 50-year ‘balancing act’
Coastal Resources Commission legal counsel Mary Lucasse, speaking during a recent legal symposium in New Bern, said the Coastal Area Management Act balances development and private property rights with protecting natural resources.
History’s not-so-humble hedgerow habitat was nearly lost
If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow, don’t be alarmed now, it’s just native habitat and an ancient permaculture ecosystem almost completely wiped from Europe after World War II that’s perfectly suitable here.
G. Albert Lyon made millions but loved Gooseville Gun Club
A 1957 Sports Illustrated profile would dub him “The Commodore of Bimini,” but that was after the prolific inventor and successful businessman had enjoyed the simple pleasures of a sportsman’s life on the Outer Banks and his Gooseville Gun Club in Hatteras Village.
Spooky storefront apparition
Webs around a vent in the tiled storefront wall of the old, now vacant, M. Mann’s & Sons building in Newport create a ghostly appearance peering out slightly menacingly at passersby from the longtime home of the former C.M. Hill Hardware, where Chatham, East Chatham and Market streets all converge with the North Carolina Railroad Co. line and East and West Railroad boulevards. Photo: Mark Hibbs
As timber declined, Buffalo City loggers made ’shine
Recently detailed by “When Ghosts Made Moonshine” author Chris Barber, loggers in the remote, deeply forested northeastern region of North Carolina supplied highly regarded whiskey to speakeasies up the East Coast during Prohibition.
Earl Slick: Airline founder, Banks developer, outdoorsman
The president of Slick Airways and son of a successful Oklahoma oil wildcatter purchased a longstanding Outer Banks hunt club in 1972, a decision that would have lasting effects here.
Reflections on 50 years of NC Coastal Area Management Act
When first considered 50 years ago, North Carolina’s Coastal Area Management Act was hotly controversial environmental legislation, and despite challenges past and present, it remains the state’s only attempt to forge a partnership for regional resource management.
In ’76, oilman Walter Davis made a bet on the Outer Banks
He grew up on a soybean farm near Elizabeth City and his billion-dollar empire included for a time Southern Shores in Dare County, a different sort of asset that paid off.
Dolan, Godfrey: Scientists proved Outer Banks are moving
Findings more than 50 years ago by coastal geologist Robert Dolan and husband-and-wife researchers Paul and Melinda Godfrey changed barrier island understanding and led the National Park Service to reverse longstanding policy.
Officials explore historic district designation for West Hertford
The town council voted unanimously last week to accept a proposal from Landmark Preservation Associates to perform the work needed to secure the designation.
Manager says Corolla horses look ‘marshy’ for good reason
Meg Puckett, who manages the herd for the Corolla Wild Horse Fund, knows well the challenges and the horses themselves, but she says the work never gets old.
Beaufort’s quiet but rich history has become its big draw
North Carolina’s fourth oldest town was sparsely populated for generations but turned itself into a destination for visitors, new residents and environmental study.
Artifacts appear to confirm ‘first contact’ at Roanoke Island
A copper ring and bits of pottery recently found in a layer of soil 3 feet deep on Roanoke Island are consistent with the site of the Algonquian village where English explorers arrived.
From pivotal beginnings, Brunswick County history lives on
While the southernmost county on the North Carolina coast shares features similar to other coastal counties, its historic destinations, charming towns and recent rapid growth help make it unique.
