· Though it's not certain when construction began, the original Cape Lookout Lighthouse was completed and lighted in 1812. The 96-foot high brick tower was eventually painted with red and white horizontal stripes.
· The first Cape Lookout Lighthouse is completed on the four-acre Fulford-Pigott tract at a cost of $20,678.54. It is a brick tower inside a wood frame building. The boarded exterior is shingled and painted with red and white horizontal stripes. Its mechanism consists of thirteen 21-inch parabolic reflectors. The focal plane of the light is 96 feet above ground and 104 feet above sea level. President James Madison appoints James Fulford as the first keeper at a salary of $300 a year.
· In July, 1814, British forces landed at Cape Lookout and partially destroyed the lighthouse there. When the British attempted another landing on July 16, they were repulsed by troops from Fort Hampton and Beaufort. The first Cape Lookout lighthouse continued to serve until Nov. 1, 1859, when the present lighthouse was first lit.
· In time, it proved to be inadequate to protect passing ships from the Horrible Headland of Lookout Shoals. The tower was too short and its beacon too unreliable to sufficiently light this treacherous section of the coast. By the 1850s, it was apparent that the lighthouse was in serious disrepair as well as in danger from the encroaching sea.
· The second light house was built in 1859. Congress appropriates $45,000 to build a new lighthouse.
· In 1864, Confederate troops from Kinston, guided by local agents of the Confederate Secret Service, were carried over to the Cape, planted explosives in both lighthouses and lit the fuses. The older lighthouse was destroyed, but only the interior shaft of the new one was damaged. This was repaired following the War, and has served as a beacon to ships ever since.
· In 1873, the present Keeper's Quarters was constructed and the lighthouse received its distinctive diamond-shaped, black-and-white pattern which helped to distinguish it from the other North Carolina lighthouses.
· Emeline Pigott delivered important instructions to the Confederate agents detailing the plan’s transportation, timing and supply logistics.
· The Cape Lookout Lighthouse originally burned whale oil, but changed to mineral oil in the late 19th century when whale oil became prohibitively expensive. Now of course the lighthouse uses electricity and Two airport beacons, each powered with two, 1000-watt bulbs produce the light. Each beacon completely rotates in 30 seconds, giving a flash every 15 seconds.
