Then - 1930's |
The first US Weather
Bureau Station on Hatteras Island was established at the Cape Hatteras
Lighthouse Keeper's Quarter in 1874; was moved to the Hatteras Life
Saving Station in 1880 and later transferred to a Hatteras Village
private residence in 1883 before finding its permanent home in 1901. The
original building was a wood frame structure on masonry piling. The
first floor had seven rooms including a kitchen, office, living room and
bedrooms for the weather observer. The second floor had a large
observation room/office with a ship's ladder leading to a walk on the
roof. Porches extended across the front and west side.
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Photo courtesy of
Josephine Oden |
| The station, manned by an
observer and a maintenance man, was equipped with telegraph communication
to the District Forecast Center in Washington, D.C. Hourly checks were
made of the temperature, humidity, wind velocity, solar radiation,
precipitation and pressure. An important part of the national weather
network, the station issued coastal forecasts and warnings for the area as
storm warnings. The tower to the right in the photo was used to hoist
storm warning pennants and flags. |
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Panorama From Top of Weather Bureau Station |
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Click on the image above to view a 360°
view of Hatteras Village from the top of the Weather Bureau Station. |
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Now - June, 2003 |
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Now on the National Register of
Historic Places, the station with its residence and observation
building, two storage shed buildings, cistern and steel-framed weather
signal tower is receiving plenty of attention from National Park
Service preservation crews located at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
The Cape Hatteras National Seashore Preservation Crew,
headed by Preservation Specialist George Perrot, has developed a
sequenced, 3-phased work plan, beginning with foundation stabilization,
moving to exterior restoration and finishing with interior
rehabilitation. The work on the station, having suffered heavy
structural damage from termites and wood-boring insects, will bring new
life to the main building and the surrounding grounds. Funding has been
approved for the first two phases of work which are expected to be
completed by 2002, returning the building to its 1901 exterior
appearance, including its original colors of yellow, green and brown.
The initial work includes the abatement of asbestos shingles and lead
base paint. Major structural repair will be needed throughout the
structure. Interior spaces will be rehabilitated at a later date for
adaptive use purposes compete with modernized mechanical systems. |
| U.S. National Park Service Cape
Hatteras National Seashore. Hidden Treasure in Hatteras Village
Undergoing Restoration Work. 23 Feb. 2001. U.S. National Park
Service. 25 May 2003. <http://www.nps.gov/caha/hattweather.html>. |
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