Bodie Island ( ) is a long, narrow

barrier A barrier or barricade is a physical structure which blocks or impedes something. Barrier may also refer to: Places * Barrier, Kentucky, a community in the United States * Barrier, Voerendaal, a place in the municipality of Voerendaal, Netherl ...

peninsula that forms the northernmost portion of the

Outer Banks The Outer Banks (frequently abbreviated OBX) are a string of barrier islands and spits off the coast of North Carolina and southeastern Virginia, on the east coast of the United States. They line most of the North Carolina coastline, separating ...

. The land that is most commonly referred to as Bodie Island was at one time a true

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

, but in 1811 Roanoke Inlet, which had separated it from the Currituck Banks in the north, closed.http://core.ecu.edu/geology/mallinsond/IGCP_NC_Field_Trip_Guide_rev1.pdf As a result, the Currituck Banks and Bodie Island are now one contiguous peninsula, joined together at the

Nags Head Nag's Head or Nags Head may refer to: ;In London * Nag's Head, London, a locality in Holloway ** Nag's Head Market, a street market * Nag's Head, Covent Garden, a pub ;Elsewhere in the United Kingdom * Nag's Head Island, Abingdon-on-Thames * ...

area, where the inlet once flowed. Today, either name can be used to refer to peninsula as a whole, but both portions colloquially retain their historical names. From the southern tip at

Oregon Inlet Oregon Inlet is an inlet along North Carolina's Outer Banks. It joins the Pamlico Sound with the Atlantic Ocean and separates Bodie Island from Pea Island, which are connected by the 2.8 mile Marc Basnight Bridge that spans the inlet. As one of th ...

, the peninsula stretches largely northwest out of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

and into

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

until terminating at Rudee Inlet at Owl Creek in

Virginia Beach Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city ...

. At

Sandbridge, Virginia Beach, Virginia Sandbridge, in the U.S. state of Virginia, is a coastal community of Virginia Beach, located along the coastline on the Currituck Banks Peninsula at the northern end of the Outer Banks. The Atlantic Ocean is to the east, the Back Bay of the ...

, the peninsula is tied to the mainland by low tidal swamps and causeways road. The entire peninsula is approximately 72 miles in length, following the shoreline.

Places of interest

The peninsula is home to two lighthouses,

Bodie Island Light The current Bodie Island Lighthouse (pronounced “body island”) is the third that has stood in this vicinity of Bodie Island on the Outer Banks in North Carolina and was built in 1872. It stands tall and is located on the Roanoke Sound side ...

and

Currituck Beach Light The Currituck Beach Light ()
, from the North Carolina Collection's website at the University of No ...

. The Wright Brothers National Monument also has a beacon and is found on the peninsula.

Jockey's Ridge Jockey's Ridge State Park is a North Carolina state park in Dare County, North Carolina in the United States. Located in Nags Head, North Carolina, it covers a area, and includes the tallest active sand dune system in the eastern United States. ...

, the tallest sand dune on the East Coast, is found on the peninsula. The

Cape Hatteras National Seashore Cape Hatteras National Seashore is a United States national seashore which preserves the portion of the Outer Banks of North Carolina from Bodie Island to Ocracoke Island, stretching over , and is managed by the National Park Service. Included ...

protects the southernmost part of Bodie Island, and the

Currituck National Wildlife Refuge Currituck National Wildlife Refuge (), 32.0 °F (> 0.0 °C), at least eight months with an average mean temperature ≥ 50.0 °F (≥ 10.0 °C), at least one month with an average mean temperature ≥ 71.6 °F (≥ 22.0&nb ...

Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge in southeastern Virginia is located in the independent city of Virginia Beach. Established in 1938 in an isolated portion of the former Princess Anne County, it is managed by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. ...

and

False Cape State Park False Cape State Park is a state park located on the Currituck Banks Peninsula, a barrier spit between the Back Bay of the Currituck Sound and the Atlantic Ocean, within the city of Virginia Beach, adjacent to the state border with North Car ...

protect portions of the northern part of the peninsula.

History

Bodie Island was originally known as Bodie's Island or Body's Island and was named for a family of that name, variously written as "Body" "Boddye" "Boddy" and "Bodie" that settled there. Robert Boddy/Boddie emigrated to

from London, England on August 10, 1635 on HMS Safety. He settled in

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a Counties of England, county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the List of islands of England#Largest islands, largest and List of islands of England#Mo ...

and some of his descendants later settled in what later became North Carolina, South Carolina and Mississippi. Bodie island was named for his descendants who settled the area. The family was originally from Ingatestone, Essex, England which is where thei
coat of arms
originated as well, augmentation by Elizabeth I to John Boddie for service during the naval battle with the Spanish Armada. Their history is noted in Seventeenth Century Isle of Wight County, Virginia Folklore sometimes attributes the naming of the island to the dead "bodies" of drowned sailors that washed up from the ships that ran aground and sank off the Outer Banks in what is now known as the

Graveyard of the Atlantic Graveyard of the Atlantic is a nickname for the treacherous waters and area of numerous shipwrecks off the Outer Banks of North Carolina, United States, which are due to the coast's shifting sands and inlets. To a lesser degree, this nickname has ...

. Inlets frequently open and close along the

, making landform naming inconsistent. Bodie Island, when it was an island, extended farther south than it does today. The island was originally formed around 1738, when

New Inlet New Inlet was an inlet along the Outer Banks of North Carolina joining Pamlico Sound with the Atlantic Ocean. It had not existed since 1945 before Hurricane Irene temporarily re-opened the inlet in 2011. History New Inlet first opened around 1738 ...

opened, separating Bodie Island from

Hatteras Island Hatteras Island (historically Croatoan Island) is a barrier island located off the North Carolina coast. Dividing the Atlantic Ocean and the Pamlico Sound, it runs parallel to the coast, forming a bend at Cape Hatteras. It is part of North Carol ...

to the south. The opening of

in 1846 truncated the southern portion of Bodie Island, forming a new island situated between Bodie and Hatteras. The new barrier island was given the name

Pea Island Pea Island is an island which is part of the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Because of the shifting nature of the barrier island system of which Pea Island is a part, and the way in which inlets open and close over time, Pea Island has, at times ...

, but the wider, more powerful Oregon Inlet led to the eventual closure of New Inlet around 1933. Pea Island thus became a part of Hatteras Island until 2011 when New Inlet reopened during

Hurricane Irene Hurricane Irene was a large and destructive tropical cyclone which affected much of the Caribbean and East Coast of the United States during late August 2011. The ninth named storm, first hurricane, and first major hurricane of the 2011 ...

. Near the North Carolina-Virginia state line, the

Currituck Inlet Currituck Sound ()
, from the North Carolina Collection's website at the

and Musketo Inlets along with Caffey's Inlet to the south in the vicinity of

Duck Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfamilies, they are a form ...

once existed, which made the Currituck Banks itself a chain of barrier islands. Currituck inlet served as the boundary between the two states in the early 18th century. The old Currituck Inlet closed around 1728, Caffey's Inlet closed in 1811, New Currituck Inlet had closed by 1828 and Musketo Inlet finally closed in 1882 creating the long peninsula extending from Sandbridge to Oregon Inlet that is seen today. Explorer John Lawson mentions Bodies Island just once in his 1709 book ''A New Voyage to Carolina'', when discussing

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is ''funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as ''Biota (ecology ...

of North Carolina, in particular, a species of rabbit. He wrote the following: "I was told of several that were upon Bodies Island by Ronoak, which came from that Ship of Bodies;" This would indicate that Bodie Island was so named as early as 1709.

Localities

The following is a list of places found on the peninsula, listed from south to north. *

Nags Head, North Carolina Nags Head is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States. It is a busy vacation spot because of its beaches and sand dunes of Jockey's Ridge. The population was 3,146 at the 2020 census. History Early maps of the area show Nags Head as ...

Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina Kill Devil Hills is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 7,633 at the 2020 census, up from 6,683 in 2010. It is the most populous settlement in both Dare County and on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The ...

Kitty Hawk, North Carolina Kitty Hawk is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States, and is a part of what is known as North Carolina's Outer Banks. The population was 3,708 at the 2020 Census. It was established in the early 18th century as Chickahawk. History ...

Southern Shores, North Carolina Southern Shores is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States. It is located on the Outer Banks and the population was 3,107 at the 2020 census. Geography Southern Shores is located at (36.124454, -75.732612). According to the United ...

Duck, North Carolina Duck is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 746. During the peak vacation season, starting after Memorial Day, the population increases to over 20,000. Duck is the northernmost incorpo ...

Corolla, North Carolina Corolla ( ) is an unincorporated community located in Poplar Branch township, Currituck County, North Carolina, United States, along the northern Outer Banks. It has a permanent population of approximately 500 people; during the summer vacat ...

* Carova Beach, North Carolina *

Sandbridge, Virginia Sandbridge, in the U.S. state of Virginia, is a coastal community of Virginia Beach, located along the coastline on the Currituck Banks Peninsula at the northern end of the Outer Banks. The Atlantic Ocean is to the east, the Back Bay of the Cu ...

Accessibility

Bodie Island can be accessed from North Carolina mainland from the Wright Memorial Bridge, originally built in 1966. It can also be accessed from U.S. Route 64 since the Washington Baum Bridge opened in 1994. Motorists driving north on the Outer Banks from Hatteras and Pea Islands reach the Currituck Banks on NC highway 12. The north end of the peninsula is accessible by Sandpiper and Sandfiddler Roads via Sandbridge Road, but there is no highway connecting the Virginia portion of the Currituck Banks with the North Carolina portion, and even driving on the beach is no longer permitted north of the North Carolina border. Plans for an additional access point near Corolla which would be called the

Mid-Currituck Bridge The Mid-Currituck Bridge is a proposed long two-lane toll bridge that will span across Currituck Sound, connecting US 158 and NC 12. Its purpose is to alleviate summer traffic congestion and to improve both emergency response and evacu ...

are currently on hold.

References

The Outer Banks of North Carolina - Driving Tour
* A New Voyage to Carolina, 1709. John Lawson

{{Coord, 35.85, -75.58, display=title, region:US-NC_type:isle Landforms of Dare County, North Carolina Outer Banks Former islands of the United States Peninsulas of North Carolina