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Bald Head Island Light (Bald Head Island, North Carolina)
Bald Head Island is a part of Smith Island. It got its nickname because the dunes that are a part of the island looked from a distance like a bald head. The existing Bald Head Island Lighthouse was built in 1817 as the second lighthouse on the island. The first lighthouse, the Bald Head Island Light Station, was built in 1794. Erosion problems began fairly soon after building the lighthouse and by 1813 it was clear that the structure would have to be torn down and replaced by another tower. Congress authorized a new lighthouse for the Bald Head Island Light Station in 1814.
A 4th-order lens was the size used in a
harbor light and was too weak to be useful in guiding ocean going ships around
the dangerous Frying Pan Shoals. So
in 1851 a request to Congress was made by the Lighthouse Board to make the
lighthouse into a coastal light by raising the tower to 150 feet and replacing
the 4th-order lens with a more powerful 1st-order
lens. Congress, however, didn’t follow that request but instead decided
to put a lightship at Frying Pan Shoals. They did approve a change to the Bald
Head Island Light but only to a 3rd-order lens. The lightship at
Frying Pan Shoals began operation in 1854 and continued until 1964.
Old Baldy received the 3rd-order lens along with a fog bell in
1855. In 1893 the flashing red light was changed to a white light.
Oil House After that, the history associated with Old
Baldy becomes a little more complex due, in a large part, to the changing inlet
of the Cape Fear River. A short
time after 1855 a new inlet opened up for the Cape Fear River several miles
away. The new inlet was to far away to make Old Baldy useful as a guide to the
channel, so to accommodate the ships using this new inlet a new lighthouse was
built at Federal Point. Both the
Federal Point lighthouse and Old Baldy were operational up until the Civil War,
during which time their lights remained off so as not to aid the northern
troops. After the Civil War only the Federal Point Lighthouse was re-lit. In 1881 a hurricane deepened the inlet near
Federal Point too much and in order to save Wilmington’s harbor the inlet had
to be closed. This was accomplished by the construction of a giant seawall.
This turn of events made the Federal Point Lighthouse of little use since
there was not longer an inlet at that point and the Bald Head Island Light was
reactivated. The 3rd-order
lens, however, was changed back to the weaker 4th-order type. That same year the Federal Point Lighthouse burned down. Even with the Lightship at Frying Pan Shoals
and Bald Head Island back in operation, sailors continued to complain that there
was insufficient protection with regard to Frying Pan Shoals.
Again a request was made by the Lighthouse Board to Congress to improve
Bald Head Island Light, but once again it was denied.
Instead, Congress decided to build a new tower.
It was called the Cape Fear Lighthouse and was a skeletal tower 150 feet
tall with a 1st-order lens. It was built 2.5 miles from the old
Federal Point Lighthouse location and was completed in 1903. Cape Fear
Lighthouse remained operational until it was replaced in 1958 by the more modern
lighthouse on Oak Island. Following its decommissioning, the Cape Fear
Lighthouse was destroyed. Only its base remains. In 1903, when the Cape Fear Lighthouse was activated the flashing white pattern of Old Baldy was changed to a fixed white characteristic. Old Baldy remained in service until 1935. During WW II it was equipped with a radio beacon to help serve the U.S. Navy stationed at Fort Caswell. In 1963 it was sold to a private owner who later sold it to the Carolina Cape Fear Corporation. Later it was given to the Old Baldy Foundation.
The Old Baldy Foundation was formed in 1985
and has been dedicated to preserving North Carolina’s oldest standing
lighthouse. The Smith Island Museum of History was dedicated in April of 2000
and is located in a replica of the Old Baldy Lighthouse keeper’s cottage
dating from the 1850s. The Museum is located on the lighthouse property near the
tower. Directions: There are only two ways to reach the island – by a privately-owned passenger ferry or by private boat. The twenty-minute ferry ride can be taken from the Indigo Plantation Marina in Southport, North Carolina. Ferry information can be found by calling 910-457-5003. The ferry also takes you within easy view of the Oak Island Lighthouse.
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All pictures are the original work of Rick Totton and are protected under copyright laws. Do not reproduce any images from this website without permission of the author. Copyright (c) 2000 Rick Totton.
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“Old Baldy” as it is often referred to,
replaced the initial Bald Head Island Light Station and was first lit in 1817.
The builder was Daniel S. Way and the cost of the tower was approximately
$16,000.
