Most homeowners who begin a repair project on an old home aren't terribly surprised when they discover a bigger problem than they expected. That's somewhat the case with the restoration of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, where workers have discovered some structural issues they didn't expect.
The restoration project at Cape Hatteras National Seashore, led by project managers Stone and Lime Historic Restoration Services out of North Brookfield, Massachusetts, was expected to include removal, repair, and replacement of deteriorated bricks and metalwork, stripping of old paint and installation of new exterior coating, and the highly anticipated installation of a replica Fresnel lens.
However, as workers got deeper into the project, they discovered "significant corrosion and cracking of most support brackets and an additional structural component that ties the brackets together called a tension ring. The degraded condition of these components was previously unknown because they were concealed under layers of bricks," according to seashore staff.
"Currently, structural engineers and historic architects are developing alternative repair designs and cost estimates to repair the degraded brackets, tension ring, and other associated components," staff told the Traveler. "Structural engineers are analyzing the existing bracket design to better understand the forces on those brackets and why they cracked in specific locations.
"Following the analysis, the structural engineers, along with historic architects, will recommend a repair or replacement of the cracked brackets and associated structural metal components. We expect to have a recommended design and construction cost estimates by the end of this summer. It is common when performing historic structure repairs to encounter more degradation as parts of the structure, previously enclosed and inaccessible, are carefully deconstructed," staff added.
"Other than the bracket and tension ring degradation, there have been no other significant previously unknown findings."
As Contributing Editor Kim O'Connell pointed out last summer, this is the latest major effort to protect the light station, one of the most beloved park structures in the country. At just over 198 feet tall, the lighthouse has stood sentinel over North Carolina’s Outer Banks—an ever-shifting strand of barrier islands that is a perennial beach destination—since 1870, long before Cape Hatteras became part of the National Park System in 1953.
In 1999, NPS famously moved the lighthouse 2,900 feet inland, to protect it from a constantly encroaching shoreline as the barrier island shifted westward.
So far in the restoration, paint has been removed from the entire inside and outside of the lighthouse, hundreds of metal components are being repaired or re-cast, new windows are in fabrication, and significant masonry repair and repointing efforts are underway.
"Many new landscape components have been installed, including about half of the new concrete and brick pathways, a new arrangement of the keepers' stones, turf landscaping and native vegetation," according to seashore staff. "A new fence that will surround the Double Keepers’ Quarters and Primary Keeper’s Quarters is under construction."
While the project was expected to be wrapped up by September, the new structural issues could add more time to the restoration.
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