1917 Coast Guard Station in the Cape Lookout Village Historic District at Cape Lookout National Seashore

A little farther south from the Cape Lookout Lighthouse Complex is the Cape Lookout Village Historic District, the a former village on South Core Banks. The village was founded in 1887 and continued to be inhabited until around 1960. None of the buildings are open to the public; some are nearly falling down. A few have signs out front telling you what they are, but most remain anonymous to the typical visitor. The National Park Service does hope to renovate some of the buildings and create the same type of visitor experience as it did with Portsmouth Village, but who knows if and when this will ever get done.

If you brought your 4-Wheel Drive vehicle to South Core Banks on the ferry from Davis, drive south from the dock and go past the lighthouse to reach the Cape Lookout Historic District. Signs point the way (you’ll have to exit the beach and take the service road).

If you came over on the passenger ferry from Harker’s Island or Beaufort, you have three options. One is to make a 4-mile round trip hike from the ferry dock at Cape Lookout Lighthouse. You’ll know you are at the end of the village when you come to the 1917 U. S. Coast Guard Station. As for time, figure an hour per mile. Walking on the sandy road is slow going, plus you may want to stop and take some photos.

A second option is to take the Island Express Ferry Service’s Beach Shuttle that transports guests from the Cape Lookout Lighthouse Complex to the actual point at Cape Lookout. I did not take the tour, but the ferry operator told me that the shuttle goes through the village and that you can get out at any point and get back in whenever the truck comes by, which I believe is roughly every 30 minutes. Even if the route changes, the shuttle will get you a hell of a lot closer to the village than starting from the lighthouse. There is a fee for this service ($15 in 2024). With my own vehicle, I spent an hour at the village, stopping at each building and taking photos, so if you catch the shuttle, allow two hours to see everything. The shuttle’s ultimate destination is the beach at the point, so after exploring the village you can walk to the beach and catch the shuttle back. The distance from the village to the beach is about 1.25 miles.

The third option is to rent a UTV (Utility Task Vehicle) from Island Express. The UTVs, which look like beefed-up golf carts, can hold up to four people. See the UTV Rental page for pricing and details.

If you are in your own vehicle or a UTV, when you get to the 1917 Coast Guard Station you can drive down what appears to be the only paved road in the park (the road runs next to the garage building). At the end, if you go right, you will come to the site of the former Baker-Holderness House. If you go left, you will head back to the beach and can continue on to the point of Cape Lookout.

The following are photos of the buildings in the village along with any information that I could dig up. I may be incorrect about some of these building names. Only a few were identified by the National Park Service. Furthermore, by the time you read this some of them may have fallen down or have been destroyed by a hurricane.

Principal Lighthouse Keeper’s Quarters / Barden House

Built in 1907, this house was originally located by the lighthouse, but when new technology required less light keepers, the house lost its purpose and was moved to this location in 1958 and used as a private residence by the Barden family. It is also known as the Barden House.