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Cape Hatteras Lighthouse

The Tallest Lighthouse in the United States

Lighthouse on Jennette Sedge on Pea Island (Drain Islands) near Buxton, NC

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Cape Hatteras Light is a lighthouse located on Hatteras Island in the Outer Banks in the town of Buxton, North Carolina and is part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. The Outer Banks are a group of barrier islands on the North Carolina coast that separate the Atlantic Ocean from the coastal sounds and inlets. Atlantic currents in this area made for excellent travel for ships, except in the area of Diamond Shoals, just offshore at Cape Hatteras. Nearby, the warm Gulf Stream ocean current collides with the colder Labrador Current, creating ideal conditions for powerful ocean storms and sea swells. The large number of ships that ran aground because of these shifting sandbars gave this area the nickname "Graveyard of the Atlantic." It also led Congress to authorize the construction of…

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Lighthouse

Waterbody

Jennette Sedge

Wetland

Cape Hatteras Lighthouse