The last North Carolina lightship station was opened at Cape Lookout Shoals in 1905, 20.3 miles from Cape Lookout Lighthouse.Īt one time, there was a fleet of more than 100 lightships maintained by the government. However, it wasn’t until 1860 that a station was established at Frying Pan Shoals nearly 17 miles south and east of Cape Fear. This vessel was an extremely important marker for north-south coastal traffic. “light boat” was launched in 1820 off Willoughby Split, Va., to aid Chesapeake Bay commerce, according to the Coast Guard Web site.įour years later, a lightship was assigned to Diamond Shoals about 15 miles from the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. LIGHTSHIP ERAīefore light towers, lightships were the sentinels of the ocean.Īt least six lightships were in use off England’s coast before the United States even ventured into the concept of lightships. The buoy tranmit data on wind speed, water and air temperature, air pressure, dew point and wind direction to weather stations on shore. Instead, the National Weather Service anchored a 3-meter discus buoy near the tower. Last fall, the Coast Guard announced it would not replace the weather instruments on the Frying Pan tower. “At least once a year, I take a trip out to see the tower.” “The tower is like a friend to me,” says Dugan. Hoggard High School ocean science teacher in Wilmington, agrees. “There has been a light ship or tower here since 1854, with the exception of three years during the Civil War and two years since World War II.” “It is respectful and appropriate to give the tower a burial at sea,” says Richard Cecelski, Carolina Oecan Studies director. The hard bottom provides an ideal habitat for marine life, including snapper, grouper and porgy. “The demolition project was still out for bids in March.”Īfter the tower is dismantled, it will be used an artificial reef that will be managed by the N.C. The dismantling of the tower is an ongoing project, says Dave Santos, media relations specialist in the Coast Guard’s Atlantic area office. Since Frying Pan Shoals was a dangerous area and more than 20 miles out in the Atlantic, it was an important navigational point for mariners.” ![]() “They replaced light ships as an economic move and navigational aid. “Light towers were like lighthouses in the water,” says Bob Browning, Coast Guard chief historian. The tower - along with the one at Diamond Shoals - will be dismantled in the near future because of advances in radio navigation. When there was a crew on the tower, you could at least relay a message.” “There were times when people needed assistance on their boats, but couldn’t be heard on shore. “It was like taking out the soul of the tower,” he adds. Carolina Ocean Studies, an educational tour group out of Carolina Beach, sponsored the trip. Hurricanes washed away the tower’s bulkhead, landing, and parts of the spiral staircase that Allen used to climb to the top, he recalls.ĭuring a charter trip on the SS Winner Queen, Allen sang and shared his memories of working on the tower - which transmitted signals to ships near low sandy areas or shoals. ![]() “It is good to see her after 25 years,” says Allen, who was one of the last U.S. While standing on a charter boat far out in the Atlantic, Mike Allen points to the 125-foot Frying Pan Shoals Light Tower that was once his home away from home.
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