British soil on Ocracoke

On Friday, May 12, on the North Carolina island of Ocracoke, a ceremony will be held once again to honor British seaman who were lost off the coast more than 80 years ago. And while the event itself is special, it is worth noting that the soldiers are buried -- technically -- on British soil.

This year marks the 81st anniversary of the sinking of H.M.T. Bedfordshire off the North Carolina coast on May 11, 1942, writes the Island Press. ... Representatives from the British Royal Navy and Royal Canadian Navy will be in attendance, as well as members of the United States Coast Guard, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, and students from Ocracoke School.

 When the ship went down due to a German torpedo, all 37 sailors on board died. Most of the bodies were never recovered, save for the four that washed ashore on Ocracoke.

From Atlas Obscura:

The people of Ocracoke wanted to honor the four men, and a small plot of land was donated to create a British Cemetery alongside the village cemetery. Initially it was unofficially cared for by the townspeople, simply thankful for the sacrifice of the sailors. Eventually the grounds were leased in perpetuity to the British Commonwealth for as long as the sailors are buried there, so technically the four men are buried on home soil.

... Plaques near the graves tell the story of Bedfordshire and list all the names of those who died, and a few lines from poet Rupert Brooke:

     “If I should die think only this of me

     That there’s some corner of a foreign field

     That is forever England.”

If you'd like to show support, you can make donations at ocracokepreservationsociety.org/donations or make checks payable to Ocracoke Preservation Society with “British Cemetery” in the memo line and mail to: OPS, Box 1240, Ocracoke, NC 27960.

 

Dr. Beach names Ocracoke beach No. 1, Buxton spot No. 6 in top beaches listing

"Dr. Beach," also known as Stephen Leatherman (the name his mama gave him), recently released his Top 10 U.S. beaches list. At the top? Ocracoke Island's Lifeguard Beach tops the list this year, with Buxton's Lighthouse Beach ranking No. 6.

Leatherman -- an NC State grad -- uses 50 criteria in evaluating 650 public beaches. He examines sand softness, water temperature and clarity, beach width, and even wildlife. 

Leatherman has been compiling his annual list of top 10 beaches every year since 1991.

 Leatherman's list has its origins in a class he taught at the University of Maryland. A student was writing an article for a travel magazine and asked him to come up with a list of the 10 best beaches based on his expertise as a coastal scientist. He began producing his official annual list in 1991 using his 50 criteria and his vast knowledge of U.S. ocean beaches. "I had visited every (ocean) beach in the U.S. for a Department of Interior study ... so that gave me the background data set to work from," he said.

As this article states, a few "beaches in the Carolinas, including this year’s top pick, check off a lot of boxes."

 Congrats to Ocracoke and Buxton!

N.C. beaches continue to earn accolades

We're big fans of "Dr. Beach" and his annual list of the best beaches in America. We are also blessed -- and biased; beaches from North Carolina routinely make the list, and this year is no exception.

"For the third year in a row, an NC beach is making a big splash in national rankings. Ocracoke Lifeguarded Beach has been ranked as No. 2, same spot from 2019. ...

"Another North Carolina beach, Lighthouse Beach in Buxton on the Outer Banks checks in at No. 5 on Stephen Leatherman’s list."

No. 1 on the list this year was Grayton Beach State Park  -- on the Florida panhandle.

Leatherman, a coastal scientist and professor at Florida International University, has been drafting the list under the alias “Dr. Beach” since 1991.

Leatherman uses 50 criteria to evaluate beaches, with the most important categories being water cleanliness, safety and management of the beach environment and its facilities. Leatherman uses data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to grade the beaches on water quality and has been to all the beaches on his list.

'Hey, bo, where you stay at?'

Along with natural beauty and resources, North Carolina is blessed with a host of unique dialects. Someone who grew up on, say, Ocracoke Island, is gonna talk a lot different than some from, say, the far reaches of western N.C. Heck, someone from Ocracoke is gonna speak different from someone from Wilmington, and those two locations are not far from each other at all.

Part of this variety in language and dialect comes from the fact that N.C. was influenced by a variety of cultures -- and continues to today. As more and more people continue to move into the state, those dialects and accents will shift like sandbars. And that's ok.

Our good friend Walt Wolfram over at NC State has documented the variety in accents through the years. In one of his latest posts, he writes about some uniquely North Carolina phrases and their origins. Terms like "North Cackalacky," "dingbatter" and "cattywampus."  Also glad to see "mash this button" gets a shout-out.

One of the ones he mentions is the "boot" of a car.  This is a term that my grandparents (Clinton, N.C.) have long used. Here is some more about the "boot" from Wolfram:

One of the well-known differences between British English and American English is the different terms for the primary storage area of a car. In America, it’s called a trunk and in England it’s a boot. Travelers to the Coastal Plain of North Carolina, however, may be surprised to find that rural residents in these areas also refer to it as a boot. From counties such as Bertie and Martin in the northern Coastal Plain to Brunswick and New Brunswick in the south, older residents may use the term boot to refer to what most Americans call a trunk. The residents did not travel to England to pick up the term; it’s simply an older form in English that was used to refer to the luggage compartment that often sat under the seat by the boots of the driver in horse-and-buggy times. Given the history of small, isolated rural communities in North Carolina, it stands to reason that it is a state that retains is fair share of “relic” dialect terms.

I've been thinking about some other terms that I grew up with (Dunn. N.C.). For one, the use of "hey, bo" (as a substitute for "hey, man" or "what's up?") was one that immediately came to mind. I was somewhat surprised a few years ago to see that this term has been turned into a line of outdoor clothing. I will say that this phrase appears to be unique to Caucasians, but I could be wrong about that.

Another phrase that I grew up hearing mostly from African Americans was "where you stay at?" as a way to ask about their home address or their neighborhood. (This also means that the headline to this post is probably mostly disingenuous.)

Any other phrases or words that you grew up with that would make a list like this? If so, please share them along with where you grew up.

Two N.C. beaches make 'Best Beach' list

With one of the most expansive coastlines in the United States, it's not surprising that we have some great beaches here in North Carolina. We also have a history of our beaches ending up on Dr. Beach's Best Beach list from year to year. This year is no different, according to the Associated Press.

Stephen Leatherman, a coastal science professor at Florida International University, announced his most recent list of top 10 beaches. Kapalua Bay Beach on the Hawaiian island of Maui got the top slot Thursday. Leatherman's list even has a second Hawaiian beach, Hapuna Beach State Park, coming in eighth on the list.

But that wasn't the No. 2 beach on the list. North Carolina's Ocracoke Lifeguarded Beach earned the second spot, followed by Grayton Beach State Park in the Florida panhandle; Coopers Beach, Southampton, New York; Coast Guard Beach, Cape Cod, Massachusetts; Lighthouse Beach, Buxton, Outer Banks, North Carolina; Caladesi Island State Park, Dunedin-Clearwater, Florida; then Hapuna on the Big Island, with Coronado Beach, San Diego, California, in ninth place and Kiawah Beachwalker Park, Kiawah Island, South Carolina, coming in 10th.

More about the rankings via the AP:

Leatherman has been compiling his annual list of top 10 beaches every year since 1991. He uses 50 criteria to evaluate beaches, with the most important categories being water cleanliness, safety (meaning no rip currents or drownings) and management of the beach environment and its facilities. He also looks for fine, soft sand, and gives extra points for beaches that prohibit smoking. He doesn't collect water from every beach in test tubes himself, by the way, but he does use data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to grade the beaches on water quality.

Leatherman's list has its origins in a class he taught at the University of Maryland. A student was writing an article for a travel magazine and asked him to come up with a list of the 10 best beaches based on his expertise as a coastal scientist. He began producing his official annual list in 1991 using his 50 criteria and his vast knowledge of U.S. ocean beaches. "I had visited every (ocean) beach in the U.S. for a Department of Interior study ... so that gave me the background data set to work from," he said.

His goal in producing the list each year, he says, "is to reward those beaches which maintain the high quality and the safety areas but also to encourage other beaches to do the same." He looks for beaches that "balance nature with the built environment."

But how come so many states with beloved beaches — in places like Maine, the DelMarva Peninsula, the Jersey shore, the Pacific Northwest and other coastal areas — never make the list, while the same names keep turning up year after year?

Leatherman says it's all about the math in his categories. Beaches lose points for water that's too chilly, sand that's too coarse, condo towers instead of dunes, riptides and drownings, erosion and limited public access.

Leatherman adds that he doesn't make money from the list. He just finds "it interesting to do" and hopes that the standards he promotes will encourage other beaches "to do the right thing and improve their quality."

The Republic of Ocracoke?

For such a small place, the island of Ocracoke is probably one of the most talked-about locales on this blog. This is due to a variety of reasons: it's beauty; it's "remote-yet-still-accessible" nature; it's language. Ocracoke is one of those quintessential North Carolina places; it's a treasure -- a special place to many Carolinians and "foreigners" alike.

I can't recall where I first heard the term, but recently I heard the island referred to as the "Republic of Ocracoke," and I wanted to follow up to see if this is a commonly-accepted term.

Some quick research (ie, "Google Search") does show some mentions of the term "Republic of Ocracoke," though not a ton.

This travelogue from 2008 makes a mention of the term. Along with some glowing reviews of the flora and fauna of the island is this paragraph [bolded for emphasis]:

The other local news is that Ocracoke’s oldest resident, Mrs. Belle Bryant, has just passed away.  An African American woman, born in the year the Wright brothers launched their plane at Kitty Hawk, she lived her entire life on Ocracoke and died at the age of one hundred and four.  She remembered her grandmother as a slave in the Antebellum South.  There are no African Americans living on the island now.  A number of mexicans have recently moved in as a new minority to work in the modest island construction industry.  Such is the odd human balance that currently exists in the Republic of Ocracoke!  

 Another piece is this from the Ocracoke Current that is more of a civic-minded writing:

Everyone on Ocracoke has a voice that is heard. We resist change until a clear consensus is apparent.  The microphone gets turned up a notch for people who have lived here the longest, and even further for those with deep roots on the island. Yet native Ocracokers often are overlooked and misunderstood.
This page is intended to be a resource to enhance civic involvement.  We want to increase understanding of the mission and scope of the many organizations, committees, boards, non-profits and government entities that make things happen on Ocracoke.
If you’ve read this far, congratulations!  OcracokeCurrent encourages you to check out the links, see what raises your blood pressure or makes your heart beat faster, and contact the people involved.
Democracy is not available to everyone, and we are lucky enough to have it, here on the republic of Ocracoke.

Has this phrase been around for a while, or is it fairly new? Does anyone know the genesis?

Not surprisingly, most anytime an area is segmented and presented as a separate "republic" or "state" (see the State of Franklin, for instance), it is typically because of a disconnect or downright mistrust of the preceived heavy-handed government. I wonder if this is the case with the Republic of Ocracoke -- or is it just more of a state of mind, or even a marketing campaign? If it's the latter, perhaps it's time for a flag or a snarky motto?



(Image from Wikipedia)

We talk funny: How we actually speak

Here's the second part at the look at the ways we "talk" in North Carolina. I've always been fascinated with this subject, especially after reading Walt Wolfram's "Hoi Toid on the Outer Banks." This one is actually just that -- the various dialects. And, boy, are there a lot of them in North Carolina. (See part 1 here.)

The North Carolina Language and Life Project at N.C. State (Go Pack!) has done amazing research in cataloging the various dialects all across the state. As its website states, the goals of the project are:

• To gather basic research information about language variety in order to understand the nature of language variation and change.
  
  
• To provide information about language differences and language change for public and educational interests.
  
  
• To use the material collected in research projects for the improvement of educational programs about language and culture.
• To preserve the rich heritage of language variety in North Carolina as it reflects the different cultural traditions of its residents.
  

I'm personally always trying to detect peoples' roots based on their inflections, pronunciations and even pauses. (I'm a bit of a geek that way.) You can see some of the various research findings on places such as Crusoe Island, Louisburg (one of my favorites because of the lilt), Ocracoke, Graham County, Raleigh, Durham and many others.

Here are some youtube clips that show the variety in regional dialects just in N.C. alone. (Here's a link to the NCLLP's channel.)









The project even has an online media store where you can purchase some of their work.

We talk funny: Place names

This is the first in what I think will be just a two-parter about the ways we "talk" in North Carolina. And by talk I mean the way we speak and the way we pronounce place names. I've always been fascinated with this subject, especially after reading Walt Wolfram's "Hoi Toid on the Outer Banks."

This first part is geared at the various place names in the state. North Carolina is lucky in that we have A LOT of places that have some interesting pronunciations. In fact, the N.C. Collection at the UNC-Chapel Hill Library offers a database, of sorts, on its website called, "Talk Like a Tar Heel." You can view it here. In fact, the list is organized by county, which is quite helpful.

Among my favorites are ...
Conetoe (kuh-NEE-tuh)
Concord (CON-CORD -- not CON-kerd)
Etowah (EH-tuh-wuh)
Harnett (HAR-nit)
Mebane (MEB-in -- not muh-BAIN)
Tyrrell (TERR-il)
Zebulon (ZEB-you-lon)

Of course, I don't necessarily agree with some of these; I've always heard Edgecombe as "EDGE-comb," not "EDGE-cum," as listed here.

Any other place names that don't necessarily sound like they look?

Our state's food: The Tar Heel 25

The Raleigh News & Observer has put together a list (and multimedia slideshow) of the "Tar Heel 25," the 25 foods that define our state. You can read about them here.

Here are some of the highlights.

1. Banana pudding at Savor Cafe in Charlotte

2. Picking apples at Skytop Orchard in Flat Rock. "Follow the picking with the essence of apple: a cold cider slushy and a hot cider doughnut."

3. Grits souffle at Magnolia Grill in Durham.

4. North Carolina barbecue (depending on your taste -- smart move, N&O!).

5. Seafood at Catch in Wilmington

6. Beer at Barley's Taproom in Asheville

7. Pork chop sandwich at Snappy Lunch, Mount Airy

8. A high-caffeine soda. "North Carolina has a history of inventing high-caffeine sodas, including Sundrop. From there it was a simple step to the Cherry Lemon Sundrop. It originated at R.O.'s Barbecue in Gastonia (Sundrop, Cheerwine and a slice of lemon), then branched out to What-A-Burger in Mooresville (Sundrop, Fanta cherry soda and a lemon slice). Either way, it's sweet, tart and refreshing on a hot afternoon."

9. R.O.'s slaw/sauce/dip in Gastonia

10. The "little loaves of warm cornbread with honey butter" from Mert's Heart & Soul in Charlotte.

11. Honeysuckle sorbet, Crook's Corner, Chapel Hill

12. Fried chicken from Keaton's Barbecue, Statesville

13. Fried herring from the Cypress Grill, Jamesville

14. Mallard Creek Presbyterian Church barbecue, Charlotte

15. Gaynelle Tillett's fig cake from the Ocracoke Seafood Company, Ocracoke

16. A BLT from the Merritt's Store & Grill in Chapel Hill

17. Price's Chicken Coop, Charlotte

18. The 12-layer cake from Robeson County, with "thin layers of yellow cake separated by a rich chocolate frosting. Before we dig in to the country buffet at Fuller's Old Fashion Bar-B-Q in Lumberton, we always check the dessert table - just to make sure we need to save room."

19. Uncle Scott's Root Beer, Davidson

20. N.C. State University ice cream, Raleigh (on campus or at the N.C. State Fair)

21. Chili Dog from the Roast Grill, Raleigh; Ward's Grill in Whiteville; J.S. Pulliam Barbeque in Winston-Salem

22. Mama Dip's pecan pie, Chapel Hill

23. Warm Moravian sugar cake, Winston-Salem

24. Varnamtown Oyster Roast. "The congregation of the Dixon Chapel United Methodist Church has hosted the event for more than 50 years. The line of people waiting to eat their fill of roasted oysters, hushpuppies and sweet pickles is a testament to the eating experience. To look like a pro, bring your own homemade sauce and roll of paper towels."

25. Salt-and-pepper catfish from Twin Tops Fish Camp in Belmont

Any obvious omissions? Any problems with these on the list?

Top 10 N.C. Natural Wonders announced

Land for Tomorrow has counted all the votes, and the first-ever top 10 North Carolina Natural Wonders have been announced.

They are:
-Blue Ridge Parkway
-Cape Hatteras and Cape Lookout
-Grandfather Mountain
-Great Smoky Mountains
-Lake Mattamuskeet
-Lumber River
-Merchants Millpond State Park
-Mountains to Sea Trail
-New River
-Ocracoke Island

About 1,300 nominations yielded 200 unique potential “Natural Wonders,” which were narrowed to a field of 25 semifinalists by a panel of prominent North Carolinians, said Land for Tomorrow. From those 25, “North Carolina’s Ten Natural Wonders” were determined by popular vote. Over 3,000 individual votes were submitted.

The (first) votes are in!

The list has been whittled down in the Land for Tomorrow's Top 10 N.C. Natural Wonders survey. You have until May 18th to pick your top five (or you can pick for the same natural wonder five times).

Among the choices are:
-The Blowing Rock
-The Blue Ridge Parkway
-Cape Hatteras and Cape Lookout seashores
-Chimney Rock
-DuPont State Forest
-Grandfather Mountain
-Great Smoky Mountains
-Jockeys Ridge
-Joyce Kilmer Forest
-Lake Mattamuskeet
-Linville Falls
-Linville Gorge
-Lumber River
-Merchants Millpond State Park
-Mount Mitchell
-Mountains to Sea Trail
-Natahala Gorge
-New River
-Ocracoke Island
-Pilot Mountain
-Pisgah National Forest
-Roan Mountain
-Eno River
-Outer Banks
-Wild Horse of Corolla

Some intriguing possibilities here. To be honest, I forgot about many of these; North Carolina is truly blessed. Hard to narrow down to 10.

Just looking at 'em, here are a few initial thoughts on some of the choices.

-The Blowing Rock: One of my personal favorites. It's "legend" adds to its aura.
-The Blue Ridge Parkway: At first glance, an easy top 10 ...
-Grandfather Mountain: ... as is this one ...
-Great Smoky Mountains: ... this one ...
-Jockeys Ridge: ... and this one.
-Joyce Kilmer Forest: Some of the state's oldest and largest trees reside here. An underrated place.
-Linville Falls: Very nice, but there may be more majestic falls.
-Lumber River: For thousands of years, this river was the lifeblood of natives.
-Mount Mitchell: Tallest peak east of the Mississippi seems like a no-brainer.
-New River: I think, aside from the Nile, this is the only river in the world that flows from south to north.
-Ocracoke Island: Famous for its own local "dialect," but I'm not sure it's a top 10 natural wonder.
-Outer Banks: No-brainer.
-Wild Horse of Corolla: A sleeper suggestion I hadn't thought about. Good choice.

Go here to vote.

First Raleigh, now Ocracoke: Kate Spade honors N.C. with handbags

A couple of years ago, our sister blog reported that high-fashion handbag maker Kate Spade had honored Raleigh, the state capital, with a line of inspired handbags.

"The capital of North Carolina, Raleigh is a city known for its warmth and vitality, said Kate Spade's website at the time. "What's less known is that it was a center for modernist architecture from the late '40s through the '60s. Crafted from haircalf and woven into our custom pattern, the Raleigh group is a bit of textured luxury.

So what's left to remember of that period in Raleigh, other than the bags? The best-known structure is probably Dorton Arena, designed by Matthew Nowicki. But there are also a slew of homes in Raleigh, including the Kamphoefner House designed by Henry Kamphoefner at 3060 Granville Drive and the Matsumoto House designed by George Matsumoto at 821 Runnymede Road.

The bags, similarly, have the clean lines of the midcentury modernist movement. But they don't come cheap. The least expensive of the three, at $695, is the Raleigh Suede Small, a woven soft pony and suede bag trimmed with calfskin patent leather in charcoal gray or chocolate brown.

Now, the designer has gone a few hours east of Raleigh for more inspiration. Ocracoke Island has a couple of bags in its honor. [Lowercase type-face is straight from the KS website.]

"part of north carolina's outer banks, okracoke island is reached only by ferry, which only adds to the island's quiet splendor. in 100% cotton canvas coated with a shimmery finish and leather handles and trim, our stevie satchel is resort-ready. a zip-top closure and tie detailing make it a lovely mix of femininity and practically. simply slip in your essentials for a day at the office (or choose to play hooky and head for the shore)."

Fantastic OBX shots

Keeping with today's OBX theme are several shots from Manteo, Nags Head, Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Rodanthe and Ocracoke from a fantastic "new" photographer (and friend), Kelly Capps. Be sure to click to enlarge to fully appreciate the shots.

Enjoy!

Tar Heel Traveler: A spot of Merry Old England in Ocracoke

WRAL's Scott Mason has a fascinating "Tar Heel Traveler" about four British navy sailors who washed ashore on Ocracoke Island during World War II.

Two of the men were identified, and two were not. All four were laid to rest on the island, and that spot of land was deeded to England after the war.

Watch this, dingbatters

A book I highly recommend to those interested in North Carolina culture and linguistics is Walt Wolfram's "Hoi toide on the Outer Banks," which does a marvelous job of studying the Ocracoke brogue.

This YouTube clip gives some nice insight into the quirky pronunciations and unique words of the Outer Banks residents.

Enjoy it, dingbatters!

Quick hits: Writing about Ocracoke's charms, Appalachia's borders - and honoring those that write

Ocracoke, off-season
"When the seasons cool, we tumble into the car with our dog – Blue – and head to the coast. We've had New Year's at Ocracoke and Christmas at Pawleys Island, S.C. Ocracoke is our family favorite," says the Charlotte Observer.

"The beach seems wider, the sky more blue, and there's quiet in the village except for the wind whispering down Howard Street. There's more room to run, more space to ride bikes, and there's more time to do everything or nothing at all. ..."


Bush redraws boundaries of Appalachia
"Tabbatha Tubbs laughs at the thought of Washington politicians decreeing her hometown Appalachian. After all, there’s not a mountain in sight from this gently rolling countryside best known for its thoroughbred horse farms," says the AP.

"This is picturesque Bluegrass country: Black wooden fences surround grazing thoroughbreds. Golden stalks of tobacco hang from tiered barns. And herds of fat beef cattle mow their way across fields of green grass.

"It’s hardly the heart of Appalachia, the rugged hills where President Lyndon B. Johnson declared war on poverty some 44 years ago. But like it or not, Tubbs and her neighbors are now residents of the impoverished region, at least in the eyes of the federal government. ..."


Writers, historians honored
"Three people were inducted into the N.C. Literary Hall of Fame on Sunday afternoon," said the News & Observer.

"Durham poet James Applewhite, Chapel Hill historian William S. Powell and Hillsborough novelist Lee Smith were inducted in a ceremony at the Weymouth Center for the Arts and Humanities in Southern Pines. ..."

Cape Hatteras among the nation's best beaches

Last year, North Carolina's Ocracoke Island earned "Dr. Beach's" award for the nation's best beach. A North Carolina beach was not this year's winner (that went to Florida's Caladesi Island), but Cape Hatteras, N.C., made the runner-up list.

Stephen P. Leatherman (an NCSU grad) is known as "Dr. Beach."

"Leatherman, a Florida International University professor ... picked Caladesi Island as the best beach in the 2008 ranking for his annual list, which was released Thursday. Caladesi beat out beaches in Hawaii, along the Eastern Seaboard and in California for this year's honor.

"The runners-up on Leatherman's list of best beaches this year were Hanalei Beach, Hawaii; Siesta Beach in Sarasota, Florida; Coopers Beach in Southampton, New York; Coronado Beach in San Diego; Main Beach in East Hampton, New York; Hamoa Beach, Hawaii; Cape Hatteras, North Carolina; Cape Florida State Park near Miami; and Beachwalker Park on Kiawah Island, South Carolina. ...

"Caladesi, which ranked second in Leatherman's rankings in 2007, will now be retired from the list. Most years, he has chosen beaches in Florida or Hawaii as the top-ranked. He broke that trend last year by awarding the top spot to Ocracoke Island on North Carolina's Outer Banks.
..."

Ocracoke's No. 1!

Ya gotta like this.

"Move over, Florida and Hawaii," writes the Associated Press. "Your beaches are no longer the best. The nation's best place to get a tan and enjoy the ocean's waves in 2007 is North Carolina's Ocracoke Island, a place so remote that even people in the offices of 'Dr. Beach' - Florida International University professor Stephen Leatherman [and N.C. State grad] - didn't know where to find it on the map."

"It's not the end of the world, but you can see it from here," Leatherman said from Ocracoke, the first beach not in Florida or Hawaii to earn the top spot in his annual ranking of the nation's top 10 spots on the shore.

Technically, it's Ocracoke Lifeguarded Beach that is the nation's best. But Leatherman said there's little that separates those 300 yards of postcard-perfect sand from the rest of the island, almost all of which is protected from development as part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

"Here, you have 14 miles of unspoiled, undisturbed barrier beach," said Leatherman, director of Florida International's laboratory for coastal research. "Where do you ind that in the world?"

Ocracoke is at the southern end of the Outer Banks, the fragile chain of barrier islands along North Carolina's coast known as the "graveyard of the Atlantic." Accessible only by boat or private plane, there are only about 800 full-time residents of the island where the pirate Blackbeard met his untimely death at the hands of the Royal Navy in 1718.

This rise to the top spot shouldn't be too surprising. "Dr. Beach" has consistently ranked Ocracoke highly on his list. The island ranked No. 3 in 2006 and No. 2 in 2005. But, by winning this year, it will be retired from consideration, along with other past champions.

"Earning the No. 1 ranking on the 'Dr. Beach' list is usually a tourism booster," writes the AP. "When the north beach at Florida's Fort De Soto was named the best in 2005, Leatherman said, the number of hits on a related Web site jumped in one day from 1,000 to 10,000. ..."

Ocracoke: Second-best beach for shells

North Carolina's Ocracoke Island has been named the second-best beach for shells, by Coastal Living magazine.

No. 1 on the top 10 list is Florida's Sanibel Island.

"The rare Scotch bonnet, state shell of North Carolina, sometimes turns up [on Ocracoke's beach]," writes the magaziine. "Even during the frenetic summer season, few tourists venture outside Ocracoke Village at the south end of this 16-mile-long Outer Banks island. In winter, when restless weather stirs up all sorts of treasures from the deep, only the gulls are likely to share the northern beaches. Stephen 'Dr. Beach' Leatherman ranked Ocracoke third on his 2006 'top beaches' list. ..."

Behind Ocracoke are beaches in Bandon, Ore.; Galveston, Texas; Tunnels Beach, Kauai, Hawaii; Flag Ponds Nature Park, Lusby, Md.; Cumberland Island National Seashore, Ga.; Eleuthera Island, The Bahamas; Great Peconic Bay, Long Island, N.Y.; and Stinson Beach, Calif.

Ed Teach and the slave trade

An article in the Jacksonville Daily News mentions that the Queen Anne's Revenge, the boat of Edward Teach (North Carolina's most famous pirate "Blackbeard"), was formerly used in the colonial slave trade to the New World from Africa.

"In a display case at the N.C. Maritime Museum," the article says, "beside a model of the Queen Anne's Revenge, sits a detached cross section of the replica representing the half deck. ...

"It is not the most notorious part of the ship's history - most people associate the QAR with the infamous pirate Blackbeard and his blockade on Charleston Harbor.

"Yet the QAR holds just as many links to African-American history as it does to pre-revolutionary piracy.

"For some years prior to its capture by pirates in November 1717, the QAR was the Concorde, a French slave ship that traveled the seas back-and-forth from Europe to Africa to the Caribbean."

What is intriguing is that history tells us that five of the QAR's nine crew members who survived at Ocracoke were black. (Blackbeard didn't make it out of the battle alive.)

"Researchers do not know if Blackbeard kept these five aboard from the Concorde or if they came from another slave ship captured by the pirates just prior to the battle, Moore said.

"What researchers do know is that the QAR is not the only pirate ship with ties to the colonial slave trade."