Creation and Establishment of Cape Hatteras National Seashore--The Great Depression Through Mission 66

2007·17.4 MB·English

by  Binkley, Cameron

National ParkService
U.S. DepartmentoftheInterior
Cape HatterasNational Seashore
Manteo, North Carolina
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Southeast Region
Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2012 with funding from
LYRASIS Members and Sloan Foundation
http://archive.org/details/creationestablisOObink
The Creation and
Cape
Establishment of
Hatteras National Seashore
The Great Depression through Mission 66
August2007
written byCameron Binkley
Southeast Regional Office, Cultural Resource Division
National Park Service
This administrative historyexistsintwo formats.Aprinted
version isavailable forstudyattheCape Hatteras National
Seashore,atthe Southeast Regional OfficeoftheNational
ParkService,andatavarietyofotherrepositoriesaround
the United States. Formorewidespreadaccess,this
administrativehistoryalsoexistsasaPDFthroughtheweb
siteofthe National ParkService. Pleasevisitwww.nps.gov
Cultural Resources Division formoreinformation.
Southeast Regional Office
National Park Service
100 Alabama Street, SW
Atlanta, Georgia 30303
404.562.3117
Cape HatterasNationalSeashore
1401 National Park Drive
Manteo,NC27954
http://www.cr.nps.gov/caha
Coverphoto: NPSphotograph, no date. Req.
number 1104 [?],CAHAFile,NPS Historic
Photograph Collection, Harper's Ferry
Center.
The Creation and Establishment
of Cape Hatteras National Seashore:
The Great Depression through Mission 66
Approvedby:
uperintendent /I ' date
Cane Hatteras National Seashore t/
Recommendedby:
Chief,Cultural Resources date
Southeast Regional Office
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Recommendedby:
Associate Regional Director date
Cultural Resource Stewardship'and Partnerships
Southeast RegionalOffice
Approved by:
/ RegionalDirector date
Southeast Regional Office
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WhenwelookupanddowntheoceanfrontsofAmerica,wefindthateverywheretheyarepassing
behindthefencesofprivateownership.Thepeoplecannolongergettotheocean.Whenwehave
reachedthepointthatanationof125 millionpeoplecannotsetfootuponthethousandsofmilesof
beachesthatbordertheAtlanticand PacificOceans,exceptbypermissionofthosewhomonopolize
theoceanfront,thenIsayitistheprerogativeandthedutyoftheFederalandStateGovernmentsto
stepinandacquire,notaswimmingbeachhereandthere,butsolidblocksofoceanfronthundreds
ofmilesinlength.Callthisoceanfrontanationalpark,oranationalseashore,orastateparkor
—
anythingyouplease Isaythatthepeoplehavearighttoafairshareofit.
Secretary ofthe InteriorHarold Ickes, 1938
National ParkService
CapeHatterasNational SeashoreAdministrativeHistory
Contents
Introduction
Chapter One: Origins of a Park Movement
Frank Stick 6
Conrad Wirth 8
The New Deal and "National Ocean Beaches" 9
Cape Hatteras State Park 16
The National Park Service and Frank Stick 23
The North Carolina Beach Erosion Control Project 26
The Acts Creating "Cape Hatteras National Seashore" 32
Chapter Two: Progress and Problems
Disposition of the Cape Hatteras Light Station 43
Origins of the Cape Hatteras Seashore Commission 48
Beach Preservation Spurs Park Planning 52
Problems with the Cape Hatteras Seashore Commission 58
Chapter Three: Hiatus and Uncertainty
World War 66
II
"A Prospective Oil Boom" 69
Out-waiting the General Assembly 72
Reinvigorating the Project 76
The Second Campaign Begins 81
"The Shuffler Report" 86
The Dark before Dawn 90
Chapter Four: Patrons and Opponents
The Heirs of Andrew W. Mellon 97
Park Opponents Have Their Say 103
The Murphy-Cairns-Stick Affair 108
Conrad Wirth Meets the Villagers 112
A Letter to the People of the Outer Banks 116
Chapter Five: Establishment of the National Seashore
Land Acquisition under Clark Stratton 123
Oregon Inlet, Ferries, and Roads 131
National ParkService vii
Management and Interpretation in the First Years 136
The Wild Ponies of Ocracoke Island 145
The Fishing Pier at Rodanthe 148
Condemnations and Awkward Judgments 152
Chapter Six: Developing the National Seashore
Mission 66 at Cape Hatteras 160
Beach Development and Wilderness 161
General Development under Mission 66 163
Interpretive Facilities 164
The Impact of Hurricanes on Park Planning 166
Museums, Observation Decks, and Ocean Views 168
Coquina Beach 169
The Navy's Old Docks and Secret New Base 171
A Management Review 173
Erosion Control under Mission 66 174
Conrad Wirth on Vehicle Access, 1963 179
Dedication of the First National Seashore Park 180
Hunting in a National Park 185
The Herbert C. Bonner Bridge 190
Epilogue: A Model for Later Parks...
Seashores and Lakeshores 197
The End of Erosion Control at Cape Hatteras 200
Appendix A: Chronology of Selected Events in Park History 205
Appendix B: Selected Congressional Acts, Executive Orders, and State Legislation
Relating to Cape Hatteras National Seashore 213
An Act To authorize a study of the park, parkway, and recreational-area programs
in the United States, and for other purposes 215
An Act To provide for the establishment of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore in
the State of North Carolina, and for other purposes 215
An Act To amend the Act entitled "An Act To provide for the establishment of the
Cape Hatteras National Seashore in the State of North Carolina, and for other
purposes," approved August 17, 1937. (50 Stat. 669.) 217
An Act To amend the Act of August 17, 1937, as amended, relating to the establish-
ment of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area in the State of
North Carolina 217
An Act To provide for the addition of certain Government lands to the Cape
Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area project, and for other purposes 218
An Act To facilitate the acquisition of non-Federal land within the existing bound-
aries of any national park, and for other purposes 218
An Act To amend the Act of August 31, 1954 (68 Stat. 1037), relating to the acqui-
sition of non-Federal land within the existing boundaries of any national park, and
viii Cape HatterasNationalSeashoreAdministrativeHistory