Knotts Island is a marshy island and a small

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

. The island is shared by Currituck County, North Carolina and

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the most populous city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeastern Virginia. It is the sixth-most populous city in the ...

, United States, bounded by the Currituck Sound, North Landing River, Back Bay, and Knotts Island Bay. Knotts Island is home to Mackay Island National Wildlife Refuge. Knotts Island is accessible overland from

Virginia Beach Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the List of cities in Virginia, most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeaster ...

using Princess Anne Road, or by water from the Currituck County mainland; the

North Carolina Department of Transportation The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) is responsible for building, repairing, and operating highways, bridges, and other modes of transportation, including ferries in the U.S. state of North Carolina. History The North Carolina ...

operates a free

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

between Knotts Island and Currituck on the mainland. The ZIP Code for Knotts Island is 27950. This island is a hunting and fishing community. It has numerous duck hunting blinds located in the bay as well as on land and is home to the Swan Island Hunting Club, a guided duck hunting club located across the bay on Swan Island. It is a favorite winter travel destination of artist/painter Bob Timberlake, among others. Over the years, many residents of the former

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, separatin ...

community of

Wash Woods, Virginia Wash Woods was an town, unincorporated town on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean in the former Princess Anne County, Virginia, Princess Anne County (now the independent Virginia Beach, Virginia, City of Virginia Beach), in the southeastern corner o ...

moved across the sound to settle on Knotts Island. Eventually, Wash Woods became a

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

, but descendants continue to live on Knotts Island to this day. The island supports an elementary school, two churches, a post office, and a community park. There are several businesses located on the island. Knotts Island Market is the original general store on the island. Next to the market now there is a Dollar General store. The only restaurant and bar on the island was Pearl's Bay Villa, commonly referred to as "Pearl's" in reference to the former owner. It is now closed, according to Google Maps. There are no lodgings except for a single Airbnb on Knotts Island Bay. Knotts Island hosts a Peach Festival every year in June.

References

External links

Knotts Island Web SiteCurrituck County Visitors Site
{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Currituck County, North Carolina Landforms of Virginia Beach, Virginia Islands of North Carolina Populated coastal places in North Carolina Unincorporated communities in North Carolina