Reminder: Portsmouth Island Homecoming returns for 2022 on April 23

Every two years, deserted Portsmouth Island comes alive with hundreds of descendants, friends, and visitors during a springtime event that honors the once-thriving village’s roots, and rekindles the island’s inherent sense of community.

The event that brings everyone together is the Portsmouth Island Homecoming, and though canceled in 2020 due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the more than 30-year tradition is once again returning for 2022.

The theme for this year’s April 23 event is “Portsmouth Rises” – a fitting theme, considering Portsmouth’s survival of 2019’s Hurricane Dorian, as well the subsequent 2020 cancellation.

“Jim White, Portsmouth descendant, author, and historian, has agreed to emcee our program again,” stated organizers in an update. “As per custom, the first 500 attendees will receive our special pin, and new ‘Portsmouth Rises’ T-shirts will be available along with our regular shirts, sweatshirts, notecards, etc.”

“Bring your special covered dish to the picnic on the grounds and enjoy meeting old and new friends,” the update continued. “This Homecoming will be a great opportunity to see for yourself what the National Park Service, Cape Lookout National Seashore, and Friends of Portsmouth Island have done to save this village after the devastation of Hurricane Dorian.”

Friends of Portsmouth Island (FPI), which was formed in 1989, sponsored its first homecoming event on April 25, 1992, although similar Homecoming-style gatherings have occurred since 1973. Since then, the biennial gathering has attracted hundreds of family members, as well as newcomers, who tend to return year after year after their initial visit.

The history, as well as the enticing aesthetic of the small Portsmouth village, is what attracts many visitors who have no direct familial ties with the residents who carved out a hard life on the island for generations.

Established in 1752, Portsmouth Island was once the biggest port community along the Outer Banks. At its peak in 1860, Portsmouth village had roughly 700 residents, which included 200 enslaved African Americans, 100 school-aged children, and two teachers.

But a series of events in the years after this peak would signal the village’s downfall. The Civil War led to two invasions of the island – first by the Confederates, and then by the Union forces – which in turn caused the temporary abandonment of the village.

A number of hurricanes that followed also hastened the decline. As new inlets opened on Hatteras Island and the northern Outer Banks, and a 1933 hurricane drove away many residents, the village dwindled. The U.S. Coast Guard Station was decommissioned in the 1930s, the school closed in 1943, and only the Post Office continued to function.

By the late 1960s, the village had just three residents: Henry Pigott, Marian Gray Babb, and Nora Dixon. Henry ran the mail boat from Portsmouth to Ocracoke, and took care of the last two elderly ladies, until he fell ill in 1970. He moved to Ocracoke Island and passed away in 1971, and the women moved away soon after.

But despite the fact that the village has been deserted for more than 50 years, its legacy is still very much alive. 2016 was the Homecoming’s biggest event with 450 attendees, and 2018’s event was a close second with at least 425 visitors in attendance.

The schedule for every Homecoming event is fairly flexible, with folks touring the varying buildings during the morning, followed by a program/service, and then a huge potluck lunch that requires countless tables and coolers to contain.

But the highlight of the event is arguably the Homecoming Service, where everyone gathers in the giant shaded tent in front of the Portsmouth Village church to honor the village and its families.

Because Portsmouth Island can only be accessed via a private boat, ferry service is provided to and from the village for the event.

For 2022, ferry service from Ocracoke to Portsmouth will be provided by Rudy Austin/Portsmouth Island Boat Tours, and will cost $25 round-trip per person.

It may have been a long four years since the last big gathering of family and friends, but with descendants scattered all over the East Coast, and more and more newcomers eager for an opportunity to take a closer look into the island’s deep history, the 2022 Portsmouth Island Homecoming is sure to generate a crowd, and plenty of excitement.

For more information on Friends of Portsmouth Island as well as the upcoming 2022 event on April 23, visit https://friendsofportsmouthisland.org/fopi/.