ROANOKE MARSHES LIGHTHOUSE FAST FACTS
LOCATION: Manteo, North Carolina, U.S.A.
HOURS: Monday-Friday 8:30 pm – 5 pm (closed Saturday and Sunday)
COST: Free
TIME TO COMPLETE: 30 minutes
BEST TIME OF YEAR TO VISIT: Any time of year is beautiful
ACCOMMODATIONS: Parking lot, public restrooms (Roanoke Island Maritime Museum) and small museum
The Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse sits at the end of a 40’ (12.2 m) wood boardwalk as part of the George Washington Creef Memorial Park in Manteo, North Carolina. Its picture perfect location, nestled into the calm waters of the Shallowbag Bay, make it a local attraction for those visiting the revitalized downtown Manteo. It is made of screw-pile construction and features a small, but informative, museum inside.
The current Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse is actually the fourth version. The first lighthouse was built in 1831 near Wanchese, NC towards the southern end of the Croatan Sound. It helped guide local sailors and fishermen through the sometimes treacherous sound waters yet only operated for 8 short years. It was abandoned when it fell victim to the wear-and-tear of inclement weather, poor maintenance and general neglect.
The second version of the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse, completed in 1858, was moved to the slender channel connecting the Pamlico Sound to the south and the Croatan Sound to the north. Over a few decades flooding of the marsh, over which the lighthouse stood, caused irreparable damage to the foundation. It was determined that building a new lighthouse would be more prudent than the constant, and costly, structural repairs.
Eventually a third lighthouse, just a mere few hundred feet from the previous version, was completed in 1877. This one, aided by funding from Congress, fared far better and remained functional for almost a century. In 1955, as advances in radar technology made lighthouses obsolete, the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse was officially decommissioned. The current version is a replica of this third version and was intended to be part of the Manteo Centennial Celebration in 1999. However, due to financial constraints and Hurricane Isabel, the official unveiling was delayed until 2004.
The Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse is unique in a number of ways. First is its stature. While the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse stands an impressive 206’ (62.8 m) in height, the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse is a diminutive 37’ (11.3 m). Secondly, it is the only one of two Outer Banks lighthouses (the other being Currituck Beach) that does not have an exclusive white and/or black pattern with a brick red roof being its dominant visual feature.
The Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse is also shaped in a decidedly nontraditional manner. It sits on stilts and looks more like a little cottage with the most identifiable lighthouse similarity being the Fresnel lens beacon resting inside the tower. Finally, of the six OBX lighthouses, the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse is the only one that sits in a sound and not the Atlantic Ocean.
The George Washington Creef Memorial Park also contains a few other attractions of interest. First is the Manteo Weather Tower once used to display signal flags to warn mariners of any weather concerns. There is a Helical Screw Pile used in the 3rd version of the lighthouse, a monument for local politician, and legend, Jule Day Burrus and the George Washington Creef Boathouse. On the east side of the park is a floating gazebo with an excellent view of the Elizabeth II replica ship docked at the Roanoke Island Festival Park.
Do you have a favorite lighthouse? What makes it so special for you? We’d love to hear all about it!
