The first lighted beacon at Ocracoke was built on Shell Castle Island in the year 1798, and was erected in connection with the lighthouse on Cape Hatteras. This was authorized on July 10, 1797. Further appropriations for this beacon were made in 1800, 1803, and 1808.On May 15, 1820, Congress appropriated $14,000 "for building a lighthouse on Shell Castle Island, in the State of North Carolina, or, in lieu thereof, a light vessel to be moored in a proper place near said island if, in the opinion of the Secretary of the Treasury, the latter shall be preferred."A total of $6,625 was spent in 1820 and 1821 for this purpose. "In process of time" Mr. S. Pleasonton, Fifth Auditor of the Treasury, later wrote "the channel leading in and out of Ocracoke left the lighthouse the distance of a mile, so as to render it altogether useless. The fact being made known to Congress, an appropriation was made of $20,000 for building another near the channel, and this was built in 1823, by Noah Porter, of Massachusetts, for $11,359.35."This light was built on Ocracoke Island under a congressional authorization dated May 7, 1822. It was built on 2 acres of land sold to the United States for $50 on December 5, 1822, by Jacob Gaskell, jurisdiction being ceded to the United States by the North Carolina General Assembly on December 28, 1822.The 1854 report of the Lighthouse Board indicated that at Ocracoke Island housed a fourth-order Fresnel fixed white light was substituted for the old reflecting illuminating apparatus. In 1857 the Board reported "The Ocracoke channel light vessel and the Beacon Island lighthouse, at the same place have, several times, been reported by this Board as useless and their discontinuance recommended. The erection of a small beacon light at the Ocracoke main light station, to serve as a range light, at a cost, if authorized, of not over $750, and to form a part of the present light station at Ocracoke, will fully subserve the wants of the present and prospective navigation of that inlet much better than by keeping up the Ocracoke Channel and Nine Feet Shoal light vessel, and Beacon Island lighthouse, at an annual saving of between $5,000 and $10,000." Congress appropriated the $750 for the beacon range light on Ocracoke Island on March 3, 1859, "provided that the lighthouse on Beacon Island and Ocracoke Light vessel be discontinued after the erection and exhibition of the aforesaid beacon light." In 1862 the Beacon Island light tower was still standing but the lens had been removed. Meanwhile new Franklin lamps had been substituted for valve lamps in the Ocracoke Lighthouse. In 1899 new model fourth-order lamps were supplied. The present white tower, on Ocracoke Island built in 1823, stands 76 feet above the ground and 75 feet above water and the 8,000-candlepower, fourth-order fixed white electric light is visible for 14 miles.
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Ocracoke Island
Ocracoke Pony Pens
NC 12, Ocracoke IslandThe Ocracoke Pony Pens are one of the most popular attractions on Ocracoke Island. The National Park Service maintains a herd of about 30 horses in a 180-acre pasture located off NC 12, about 6 miles south of the Hatteras-Ocracoke ferry docks. Visitors can walk up to the pens to view these once-wild horses. An observation platform allows a good view of the ponies.
Ocracoke ponies have played a large role in the history of the island. At times the herd's population ranged from 200 to 500, all of the animals roaming free on the island.No one is really certain how the horses arrived at the island, but legend says they swam ashore from Spanish shipwrecks off the coast. The horses adapted well to a diet of marsh grasses and rainwater. The locals used this natural resource for work and recreation, and even the Coast Guard and U.S. Lifesaving Service employed the ponies. In the 1950s the local Boy Scout troop practiced lassoing them.When NC 12 was paved along the island in 1957, horse-car accidents became a problem. The herd was also causing extensive damage to dune vegetation, contributing to beach erosion. The National Park Service wanted to get rid of the entire herd, but islanders protested so strongly that the Park Service agreed to keep some of the ponies contained on the island. They were penned in 1960, where they still are today. Their shelters, food, and veterinary care are funded partly by donations. The pen is free to visit, but donations are certainly welcome. Though not running wild, the ponies are not tame, and they may try to kick or bite if you try to climb into the pen or feed or pet them.Ocracoke ponies have distinctive physical characteristics: 5 lumbar vertebrae instead of the 6 found in other horses, 17 ribs instead of the 18 found in other horses, and a unique shape, posture, color, size, and weight.
