North Carolina hosts many historical sites, it has 9 historic lighthouses, of which 6 are active, plus 2 offshore light towers and 2 recently-completed replicas. The state is famous for the five tall brick lighthouses of the Outer Banks.Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is the tallest in the nation and famous symbol of North Carolina.The beacon from the light can be seen some 20-miles out to sea and has warned sailors for more than 100 years of the treacherous Diamond Shoals, the shallow sandbars which extend some 14 miles out into the ocean off Cape Hatteras.It is said that the engineer who was originally assigned the task of painting North Carolina's lighthouses, got the plans mixed up and the diamond-shaped figures, suitable for warning traffic away from Diamond Shoals, went to Cape Lookout and the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse received the spiral striping, thereby forever gaining the nickname ''The Big Barber Pole.''In the summer of 1999, as the ever-encroaching waters of the Atlantic Ocean threaten this stalwart structure, the Cape Hatteras Light was moved from its original location.The lighthouse is open to the public from early April until mid-October and visitors are welcome to climb the 268 steps for a spectacular view of the national seashore. Near the lighthouse, the frame buildings that served as quarters to the keepers of the light are still standing. One such building has been restored by the U. S. Park Service and serves as a visitor center and museum with a gift shop. It is open every day of the year except Christmas.Cape Hatteras is a great place to go for a family vacation, historic and education, it's also enjoyable for everyone!


North Carolina was also the first in flight, thats right , here Wilbur and Orville Wright, two unassuming brothers with a passion for advancing aeronautical knowledge, and the willingness to undertake a scientific adventure, made the world's first successful flight of a man-carrying, power-driven, heavier-than-air machine. December 17, 1903, was the day man first flew in this machine. It was a cold and windy day when Orville Wright climbed aboard their plane at 10:35 a.m. His first power-driven flight of 120 feet lasted just 12 seconds when he flew over a wind-swept stretch of level sand now preserved at Wright Brothers National Memorial. From those moments the science of aeronautics has borne the impress of the Wright's' achievements. The visitor center represents the focal point in the interpretation of the area(Kitty Hawk). In addition to an extensive series of modern museum exhibits telling the story of the memorial, the center also houses an information desk, where literature is available, and the administrative offices of the memorial. From the exhibition rooms, there is a sweeping panoramic view of the reconstructed Wright brothers' 1903 camp, the first flight grounds where markers designate the take-off and landing points of the first flights, and the Wright memorial shaft atop Kill Devil Hill.