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They are the Four Brothers of the Graveyard of the Atlantic… and they are a sight to see.

But they’re more than that.

People will drive from the west coast to the east coast just to sit and stare at them.

From across the globe couples flock… selecting one of the four to bare witness at their wedding. I personally saw a man from San Francisco marry a woman from Italy under the watchful eye of the brother from Currituck Beach, NC.

The nation held its collective breath as the brother from Buxton was uneasily moved a whole mile inland, away from the relentless march of the Atlantic Ocean.

They are the four monstrous brick lighthouses standing in the sand of the North Carolina Outer Banks.

You surely will recognize the most famous of the four brothers, Cape Hatteras. The one with the black and white paint patterned like a frozen barber’s pole. It’s the tallest brick lighthouse in the world at 210 feet. Cape Hatteras, the lighthouse, interestingly enough is not in Hatteras, the town. The lighthouse is in Buxton, a dozen miles up the highway from the town Hatteras. The light is named for Cape Hatteras… the sandy point on which it stands.

There had been so many inferior lighthouses built and then wiped right off the face of the Carolina coast by hurricanes and nor’easters that in the mid 1800s the federal government made a dramatic and unprecedented commitment to the nations shipping trade: From 1859 to 1875 four of the most massive, structurally strong and architecturally stunning lighthouses in the world would be built along what was becoming know as “The Graveyard of the Atlantic.” Hundreds and hundreds of ships were being ripped apart and sunk on the treacherous Atlantic coastline.

Enter the family born to save lives and cargo. All of them given life within 16 years of one another. The youngest is Currituck Beach-1875… Bodie Island (pronounced “body”)-1872… Cape Hatteras-1870… and the oldest brother, Cape Lookout, born in 1859. They are the Four Brothers of the North Carolina Coast.

And they are all marvels of architecture… and now history. They’ve withstood hundreds of brutal Atlantic storms. 130-plus years and they are all still standing… in different states of physical health. Some refurbished and open to all comers. Some not.

I’m lucky because I’ve seen all four and have been to the top of three, Currituck, Hatteras (before and after the move) and most recently, Cape Lookout, the last of the four brothers for me to see.

Because we’re the “Carolina Traveler” crew we often get unique treatment. It’s the best perk of doing what we do. We get to go places and see things and talk to people that most folks can’t.

For safety reasons, the public is currently NOT allowed to the top of the Cape Lookout Light. Andy and I were escorted to the top by the National Parks Service. And we stayed there for almost and hour.

We hit it on a perfect day. Crystal clear. Sunny. Nice breeze. It was spectacular. You know how talented a photographer Andy is… you’ll love the high definition video he shot. I went through it frame by frame last week. Truly remarkable.

Here’s the kicker: if you want to be the caretaker of the Cape Lookout Light, you can. You can be our “brothers” keeper. Pun intended. I’m totally serious. You can be the “light keeper” for about six weeks. You live in the keeper’s house, run the information booth and live on your own island! It’s not a cinch, of course. You have to apply, and the waiting list is several years long, but hey, how many world famous lighthouses will you ever get to live next to and watch over? Just one that I know of… Cape Lookout Lighthouse.

We have the scoop for you… we talked with the couple living at the lighthouse now (they signed up 3 & ½ years ago) plus Andy’s one-of-a-kind hi-def video as well… including the changing of the light. I’m pretty sure that is something you’ve never scene. We happened to land on Cape Lookout the same day the Coast Guard was there servicing the light. Call it dumb luck or blind luck… that kind of stuff happens to us so often I started calling it “Carolina Traveler luck.”

Anyway, tune in to the show Saturday nights in November at 7:30 on WCNC and you’ll find out everything you need to know about the oldest for the four brothers and how to sign up for the light keeper gig.

See you on Saturday and talk at you next week,

Mike Redding