Many are familiar with the recent history of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse.  Its storied journey in 1999 of approximately 2500 feet to the southwest of its original position was detailed in the New York Times and captured by the Discovery Channel.  Few know the true history of the Lighthouse, however.  The current incarnation was built in 1870, but was not the first Cape Hatteras Lighthouse.

In 1803, the first Cape Hatteras LIghthouse was built just southeast of the 1870 site.  Standing less than 100 feet tall, the 1803 Light was widely regarded as one of the worst lights along the eastern seaboard.  Mariners joked about how ships ran the risk of running aground while searching for the light.

In 1854, the Lighthouse Board built an addition to the original tower, raising the elevation to about 150 feet.  Still, the lighthouse did little for mariners and Congress soon decided that the best way to resolve the problem was to start over and build a fist order lighthouse.  What many people do not know is that Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is built on the same general "platform" as the Bodie Island Lighthouse, the Currituck Lighthouse and the prototype, Cape Lookout Lighthouse.  Indeed, the four major lights along the Outer Banks are all sisters.  They are not quadruplets, though.  The lights vary in height, the lantern rooms are all slightly different and Cape Lookout does not have a separate oilhouse attached to the exterior.  Still, their similarities are noticeable and even with today's advanced technology, the lighthouses still help to protect mariners from running aground on the dangerous shifting shoals of the Outer Banks.