The replica lighthouse is actually the fourth to carry the name of Roanoke Marshes, as three different structures were used at the station in Croatan Sound. The first lighthouse was built by Lucius Lyon of Michigan and went into service in 1831. After just eight years, the tower had to be abandoned as it was in need of extensive repairs and a Mr. Van Pelt claimed title to the land on which the lighthouse had been constructed.

Work on a replacement lighthouse did not commence until 1857. This second incarnation consisted of a hexagonal dwelling surmounted by a lantern room and supported by seven piles that were anchored in the seabed. J.M. Daniel and J.B. Casey were respectively the first principal and assistant keeper at the second Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse. On April 15, 1858, they lit the lamp inside the station’s fourth-order Fresnel lens for the first time. By 1876, the wooden support piles had suffered significant worm damage, and the lighthouse itself had been flooded on a couple of occasions. The structure was deemed unsafe, and work on a third lighthouse, which would serve as the model for the replica lighthouse, was started 100 yards to the south-southeast.

1877 Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse on station Photograph courtesy U.S. Coast Guard

The third lighthouse was a white, square structure, supported by seven screw piles that stood in nine feet of water. The new lighthouse was activated in 1877 and displayed a fixed red light and later a fixed white light with a red sector from within its lantern room. A fog bell, which was struck one blow every twelve seconds by machinery, was later added to the station. A more powerful compressed air siren eventually replaced the fog bell, but the bell was kept in place in case the siren was disabled.

Unaka B. Jennette minded a light on Cape Hatteras for twenty years. The first seventeen were at Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, and the last three were at a skeleton tower that was constructed nearby when the lighthouse was threatened by erosion. When the Coast Guard assumed control of all U.S. lighthouses in 1939, Jennette chose to remain a civilian employee and was transferred at that time from Cape Hatteras to the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse. He served at the screwpile light for four years until his retirement.

When the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse was decommissioned by the Coast Guard in 1955, it was suggested that the town of Manteo purchase the lighthouse and relocate it to the Manteo waterfront. Before the town acted, a private citizen named Elijah Tate acquired the lighthouse along with two other screwpile lighthouses in the area. The structure was cut from its foundation and placed on a barge to be transported to its new home. Not far from its original site, rough seas caused the lighthouse to topple off the barge and sink into the sound. Apparently, the effort to retrieve the submerged lighthouse was deemed too great, and the structure was abandoned.

Decades later the town of Manteo decided to build a replica of the lighthouse as the “bricks and mortar” component of their 1999 centennial celebration. Funding delays, objections by the US Army Corps of Engineers, and Hurricane Isabel all contributed to pushing the completion date well beyond the centennial year. Finally, on September 25, 2004, the replica was dedicated, along with the George Washington Creef Boathouse, and opened to the public. The lighthouse, which stands where the town’s wastewater treatment place formerly stood, is a great addition to the waterfront and helps remind Manteo residents of the town’s proud maritime heritage. To add a crowning touch of authenticity to the lighthouse, the Coast Guard has loaned an historic fourth-order Fresnel lens for display in the lantern room. The North Carolina Maritime Museum on Roanoke Island operates the lighthouse as part of its facilities.

References

1. Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse Commemorative Book, Melody Leckie, 2004.

Call the North Carolina Maritime Museum on Roanoke Island at (252) 475-1750 to find out when the lighthouse is open and for more information.