Coming to an area that has always been remote and isolated, only accessed by boat or ferry until a wooden bridge was built in 1930, it is no wonder that what is now a popular tourist's retreat is a place also steeped in mystery and folklore.  So to shed some light on the intriguing town names here on the Outer Banks I am going to highlight the origins of a few.
   
Tucked away in the Northern beaches is a small town called Duck, N.C.  Because this is the halfway point for migrating waterfowl, it is no wonder that for hundreds of years this has been a popular spot for hunters and bird watchers alike.  It is said that the first Post Master in the area gave the town the name "Duck" due to the abundance of the migratory waterfowl and respectively, the ducks.
   
Working our way South, the next area is referred to as "Southern Shores."  Said to have been coined by Mr. Frank Stick, an artist that settled on Roanoke Island in 1929 and helped make Cape Hatteras Seashore part of our National Parks along with Fort Raleigh and the Wright Brother's Monument.  He thought Southern Shores sounded like a beautiful place for those seeking coastal real estate.
   
As we follow our birds eye view down the coast, the next town we come to is "Kitty Hawk."  Historians say this name derived from the Native American name for a village in the area called "Chicken Hauk" and evolve through the years and manipulation by our local brogue into Kitty Hawk.  The name Chicken Hauk has been seen on maps since the early 1700s and is recorded by the 1800s on local property deeds as Kitty Hawk, probably in accordance with what locals were calling it.  I enjoy the possibility that the name comes from a phrase locals used to describe hunting for geese, the would say they went out to "killy honk."
   
Next we travel to "Kill Devil Hills."  I've heard Old Timers say it was named such because the spirits they made were strong enough to "Kill the Devil."  It's been documented that a Land Surveyor from Virginia marking the line between his home state and North Carolina didn't like the area or people one bit.  William Byrd is said to have written The History of the Dividing Line Betwixt Virginia and North Carolina, though it was unpublished, and to have said the rum from our area "is so bad and unwholesome that it is not improperly called 'Kill-Devil'."  It certainly sounds like there are elements of truth to both accounts concerning the local distilling.
   
The next town we come to in our journey South is "Nags Head."  Fact diggers have said this name probably comes from Englishmen who settled in the area and it was common in England for places and taverns to have the name Nags Head.  Locals say it comes from hanging a lantern around a Nags Head and walking it up and over the sand dunes to give the appearance of a ship in deep water.  Luring those further out to sea into our shallows and shoals, grounding them, and "salvaging".

This blog was written by: Susan Wescott Overman 

On just our $15 Cessna airplane ride & on the shortest biplane ride that we offer for $99 for 2 people our air tour passengers can see 4 bridges which connect mainland Dare County to the Outer Banks.  Before the 1920s you needed to ride on a ferry to get to Manteo, Nags Head, Kill Devil Hills and more!

The closest bridges to the airport in Manteo are the bridges that connect mainland Dare County to Roanoke Island.  The oldest of these is the William B. Umstead Bridge is a steel stringer design bridge that is 2.8 miles long.  Dare County Bridge #9 was built in 1955  and dedicated to Mr. Umstead who was the 63rd Governor of the State of North Carolina.  It connects the north end of Roanoke Island to Manns Harbor.  The west end of the William B. Umstead Bridge is also the home to more than 100,000 Purple Martins during the months of July & August.  These small aerobatic birds choose to roost here on their way migrating to Brazil.  There are so many during dusk & dawn that the speed limit drops to 20MPH during these hours to protect them. It is also known as the “Old Manns Harbor Bridge” since it was replaced by a new more modern bridge that crosses over from Manns Harbor to Roanoke Island further south.   This bridge is called the Virginia Dare Memorial Bridge.

The Virginia Dare Memorial Bridge is a segmented girder bridge & is 5.2 miles long making it the longest bridge in the state of North Carolina.   It is 65 feet tall in the middle with pilings that reach 100 feet below it into the Croatan Sound and connects the south end of Manns Harbor by way of Highway 64 to Highway 264 & Highway 158 to the beach. The Virginia Dare Memorial Bridge is designed to last at least 100 years!  Finished in 2002, The Virginia Dare Memorial Bridge costs $90 million to complete.  This bridge is dedicated to Virginia Dare who was the first english child born in the new world in 1587.  

On just the $15 ride you will see a 3rd bridge!  To get to Nags Head from Roanoke Island you cross a concrete slab bridge called the Washington Baum Bridge at 82 feet high and just over 1 mile long.  It was completed and dedicated to Washington Baum in 1997 to replace the original bridge that Wanchese native & county commissioner Washington Baum influenced to build in the 1920s.  Driving over this bridge is exciting for visitors coming to the Outer Banks because for the first time during your travels you can see the beach & Jennette’s Pier!  Driving east if you look to the left you see Pirates Cove Marina with all of its beautiful yachts!  To the west & south side of the bridge is a very nice boat ramp.   Careful of high crosswinds driving over the bridge.

The 4th bridge seen on the $15 ride is the Melvin R Daniels bridge connects the Pirates Cove area to Nags Head through the Causeway.  This bridge is referred to as the “Little Bridge” and is a terrific place for 1000s of visitors & locals for fishing and crabbing off the sides.  The fishing platforms run on both sides of the bridge to make it enjoyable to fish off it’s low sides.  This bridge was dedicated to Melvin R. Daniels in 1997, Daniels  was a former NC State Senator. 

To get onto the Outer Banks from way of Currituck the Wright Memorial Bridge connects Point Harbor to Kitty Hawk, the east bound, concrete slab bridge was completed in 1966 & the west bound segmented girder bridge was completed in 1995.  Each of these bridges are just under 3 miles long.  They replaced what was originally a wooden 3 mile bridge that cost $1 toll to cross built in 1930 to replace a ferry service.  Many of our tour passengers will spend way too much time on this bridge as the enter onto the Outer Banks with traffic backed up for hours on Saturdays east bound.  You may see our banner planes running ads about events & even our $15 rides & biplane rides banner to the unfortunate traffic jam.  You might consider an alternative route to the Outer Banks through Elizabeth City, Edenton & Plymouth on highway 64 where you would instead cross the Virginia Dare Bridge onto Manteo & into Nags Head.

On our Inlet tours in both the biplane & the Cessna, our newest  and most exciting bridge is the Marc Basnight bridge spanning 2.8 miles long & cost $252 Million to complete & opened in February 2019.  Marc Basnight is currently a senator in North Carolina.  The Marc Basnight Bridge connects Bodie Island (South Nags Head) to Pea Island (Rodanthe & south).   It replaced the Herbert C Bonner Bridge that still stands but will be demolished.  Without a bridge to cross the Oregon Inlet, the visitors & residents of Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo, Avon, Buxton, Frisco & Hatteras Island are only able to get to their homes by boat or air.  The Bonner Bridge withstood many more years that its lifespan & allowed over 2 million cars across each year ranking only a 4 out of 100 as a safe bridge with 100 being the safest!  

On our hour long Cessna & biplane rides you can see the “New Inlet” Bridge & the construction of the Jug Handle bridge on the northern end of Rodanthe.   The New Inlet bridge was constructed after Hurricane Irene created a new inlet through Highway 12 on the Pea Island Wildlife Refuge.

The Jug Handle bridge will be 2.4 miles long & is considered phase 2 of the Bonner Bridge Replacement project.  It will leave out of the north end of Rodanthe and connect north to highway 12 standing over the Pamlico sound.  The budget to complete the Jug Handle is $145 Million.

To book a biplane ride or $15 air tour click here: ​https://www.obxairplanes.com/