The Highway That
Stole an Island
Knotts Island legally belongs to
C'urrituek, but it has become a Lost
Province.
By BILL SIIAKPt:
Good roads and bridges have re¬
covered to North Carolina all of its
"Lost Provinces" except one. Roads
and a bridge gave one of our fairest
lands to Virginia, and it may never be
regained.
Knotts Island is 5 miles by
УЛ
wide,
with its northernmost mile lying north
of the Virginia line. This mile was put
there by Byrd’s famous Dividing Line
party, which had started, willy-nilly,
from old Currituck Inlet — long since
closed. (For Byrd’s description, sec
next page.) By the last census, 416
Tar Heels — all white — lived on the is¬
land, residents also of Currituck
County.
It is almost, but not quite an island
by virtue of a complicated arrange¬
ment of waters. The northern end is
bordered by Virginia’s Back Bay; the
cast by Knotts Island Channel, which
separates the island from the Banks;
on the south is Currituck Sound, and
on the west North Landing River.
When you pass over this latter water
to get to Knotts Island, it is repre¬
sented by the narrow intra-coastal wa¬
terway cut which connects Virginia's
navigable waters with those of North
Carolina.
It is a place of great antiquity, as
antiquity goes in this new world of
ours, and may have been the earliest
settlement with an unbroken history
to this day.
On Old Map
It appears on the Combcrford map
already designated "Knot Isle" for set¬
tlers who had been there long enough
to name the place. The Combcrford
map was published in 1657 from sur¬
veys made even earlier. George Du¬
rant was in Perquimans at least by
1667.
Л
James Knott, apparently in¬
dentured, was living in Virginia in
1623. In succeeding years, a stream of
Knotts sailed for the Carolinas, some
of them under sponsorship of this
James. Forty years later, seafaring
Knotts — at least four of them — were
masters of ships clearing for Carolina.
James Knott, or one of his brood,
must have moved across the then-
unsurveyed line, before the 1657 map
was made. It became a part of Curri¬
tuck County and for nearly two hun¬
dred years was as close to the rest of
the state as most isolated, waterbound
places were. Shallow waters sur¬
rounded the island, but with small
boats the residents made shift to cross
the sound to Currituck Courthouse.
Road to Virginia
Then came the road northward into
Virginia. The freight boat line, which
once stopped a quarter mile offshore
and loaded and unloaded passengers
and freight succumbed. By automo¬
bile. it was now only 40 miles to
Norfolk.
For two generations, traffic with
North Carolina has almost ceased, ex¬
cept for those who go down to the
courthouse for court and to pay taxes
School in Virginia
Knotts Island has an elementary
school, but the children grow up to
attend high school at Creeds, in Vir¬
ginia, where they mingle with little
Virginians, listen to a Virginia school
teacher and study Virginia history. At
home their mamas and papas read Vir¬
ginia newspapers, do their shopping in
Virginia stores and — many of them
— hold down jobs in the Norfolk area.
One of the great events in the his¬
tory of Knotts Island was the coming
of Joseph K. Knapp, wcatllhy Crowell
Company publisher. He bought a vast
tract of lowland toward the west, a
part of Knotts Island called Mackay
Island, and here he built his gunning
retreat, including a 16-room cottage.
Knapp look a kindly and paternal in¬
terest in Currituck County throughout
his life. Upon his recent death, his
Knotts Island property was bought by
the Princess Anne Lumber Company.
Knotts Island is reminiscent of Roa¬
noke Island. Somewhat smaller, it is
a sound island and approached by a
road running through a vast cane and
grass marsh. Then the road comes
onto high, sandy land, and winds
through pine forests. It lacks any con¬
centration of dwellings, but has two
churches — Baptist and Methodist —
two stores and the elementary school.
There is a post office, too.
The residents who do not work off
the island make their living from farm¬
ing (corn, soybeans, potatoes, hogs)
and from commercial fishing. This is
not too important now. though last
spring a quarter-million dollars worth
ТНГ
STATE, Vol. XXI; No. 21. Entered a* second-clan matter. June I. I»», at the Poitomce at Raleleh. North Carolina, under the aeC of
March J. I»:». PublUhed by Sharpe PubtUhlne Co.. Ine.. lawyer» Hide . Raleigh. N. C. Copyright. 19S3. by the Sharpe PublHhlng Co.. Ine.