Pushing past the romantic: preservation and interpretation at historic lighthouses in North Carolina
- UNCW Author/Contributor (non-UNCW co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- Alicia Thomas (Creator)
- Institution
- The University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW )
- Web Site: http://library.uncw.edu/
- Advisor
- William Moore
Abstract: This thesis examines four historical lighthouses in North Carolina that are operated as
historic sites. These four lighthouses are Bald Head, Cape Hatteras, Ocracoke, and Bodie Island.
Bald Head is owned by a non-profit organization, while Cape Hatteras, Ocracoke, and Bodie
Island are all owned by the National Park Service as part of Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
Each of these lighthouses has undergone some amount of preservation, is open to visitors in
some context, and offers some form of educational interpretation. These historic lighthouses
have made decent attempts at offering interpretation to their visitors but each of the sites could
improve.
One of the main problems historic lighthouses face is that lighthouses have been heavily
romanticized over time. Interpreters often get caught up in this romanticized history and neglect
to acknowledge their complex history. By excluding these important components historic
lighthouses today perpetuate the idea of these structures as romantic places. These four
lighthouses need to be more inclusive in their interpretation. Part of the reason that these sites
have insufficient interpretation is because they were all preserved for unclear reasons. The
reasons why historic sites are preserved should be a starting point for the interpretation of the
site. In order to understand what is currently going on at historic lighthouses today and what
should be included in their interpretation it is necessary to know the administrative and
technological history of lighthouses, the specific history of these four sites, the history of
preservation and lighthouse preservation in the United States, and how each of these sites has
been preserved.
Pushing past the romantic: preservation and interpretation at historic lighthouses in North Carolina
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Created on 1/1/2009
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Additional Information
- Publication
- Thesis
- A Thesis Submitted to the University of North Carolina Wilmington in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts
- Language: English
- Date: 2009
- Keywords
- Historic buildings--Conservation and restoration--United States, Lighthouses--Conservation and restoration--North Carolina, Lighthouses--North Carolina--History
- Subjects
- Lighthouses -- North Carolina -- History
- Historic buildings -- Conservation and restoration -- United States
- Lighthouses -- Conservation and restoration -- North Carolina