Let the rebuilding begin; Ocracoke School moves forward from Hurricane Dorian

While much of Ocracoke has returned to a new “normal” in these challenging times, Ocracoke School still has a way to go. With a great deal of initial reluctance, Ocracoke School eventually joined about 35 other buildings in Ocracoke village that were torn down due to historic flooding caused by Hurricane Dorian on Sept. 6, […]

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UPDATED: Ocracoke tram service to include trial-run stop at island’s famous lighthouse

Update: Tram service to the lighthouse will begin as soon as the National Park Service installs signage, the Observer learned today (Monday, June 21). The original version of this story said tram service to the lighthouse would begin Monday, as was announced in a public meeting June 17. Sometime after Monday, when passenger ferry service is scheduled […]

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Ocracoke and Portsmouth Christmas Bird Counts take place despite pandemic

Conducting outdoor bird censuses at the end of December can be a challenge, normally due to the specter of horrible weather. The Portsmouth and Ocracoke island Christmas Bird Counts (CBC) that took place on their end-of-the year dates, Dec. 30 and 31 got done, though Ocracoke’s weather was not ideal. The counts, like hundreds of […]

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Was ‘The Lost Colony’ really lost or just decamped to Hatteras Island?

Scott Dawson is on a mission for the Lost Colony truth. The native of Hatteras Island, or as he might prefer, Croatoan, has published a book that, among other things, debunks, he says, the myth of the Lost Colony. The fate of the Lost Colony on Roanoke Island, Dare County, has been a matter of speculation, […]

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‘Ocracoke’ the horror movie? Stand by

Ocracoke over the years has been well-documented in video productions from its famous “hoi-toide” brogue to lots of footage featuring the much-awarded beach, ghosts, its light house and the devastation wrought by hurricanes over the years. What’s been missing is a full-length filmed-on-location horror movie. That has changed as a camera crew and cast showed […]

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The campaign end approaches: Ocracoke concludes early/one stop voting

The two-day early voting period on Ocracoke before the General Election ended Friday with a total of 356 voters, Viola Williams, Hyde County elections director said today. Voting took place last Thursday and Friday (Oct. 22 and 23) in the Ocracoke Volunteer Fire Department, the same place for the voting in the General Election on […]

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N.C. House Speaker Moore visits Ocracoke

With no fanfare, NC General Assembly House Speaker Tim Moore visited Ocracoke on Wednesday. When asked how he was doing, after having lunch at Howard’s Pub, he replied, “I’m on Ocracoke, it couldn’t be any better.” Coming down Hatteras Island, Moore (R-Cleveland) boarded the Ocracoke Express passenger ferry along with Jed Dixon, deputy director of […]

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