2017 Events on Bald Head Island

This year is very special to Bald Head Island. We will be celebrating the 200th Birthday of Old Baldy Lighthouse, with numerous events throughout the year to mark the occasion. Make your plans now to be a part of the celebrations. With festivities kicking off in April and running through the holiday season, you’ll want to return to the island again and again to join in on the fun.  

It’s estimated that Old Baldy Lighthouse has 28,000+ visitors each year. This state treasure is the oldest standing lighthouse in North Carolina. Old Baldy was designed to guide mariners safely through the mouth of the Cape Fear River. Although the Old Baldy Lighthouse was completely white when it was built in 1817, large pieces of stucco began to fall off the lighthouse after it was deactivated in 1935. It has been said that Old Baldy “looks like a patchwork quilt of different stuccos.” Since stucco has changed quite a bit since Old Baldy was built, patches of new stucco can easily be seen when people visit this historic landmark. We believe this beautiful patch work is what gives Old Baldy such character.  (Watch an aerial video of Old Baldy by clicking here.) 

Thanks to the Old Baldy Foundation, admission fees, gift shop sales and fundraisers, Old Baldy Lighthouse will be celebrating its 200th birthday in style. There will be an Old Baldy Lighthouse Birthday Party on the grounds of the lighthouse on April 15, a Quilters’ Workshop in May, “North Carolina Treasures Weekend” in June, and a National Lighthouse Weekend Celebration in August. On June 16, Southern Living magazine opens its 2017 Idea House for tours on Bald Head Island, with a portion of all proceeds being donated to the Old Baldy Foundation. Annual island events that you have come to know and love, such as the 4th of July Golf Cart Parade, Roast & Toast on the Coast in October, and Light up the Holidays Open House during Thanksgiving will still be held as well. 

If you would like to see the complete list of events for 2017, please visit https://www.baldheadisland.com/events. You can also find more information about the rich history of the Old Baldy Lighthouse and the Old Baldy Foundation by visiting their website at  www.oldbaldy.org. Would you like to see pictures and video of the latest happenings at Bald Head Island? Then, follow us on Instagram  
at  Bald Head Island Instagram from your smartphone. 

Published on Friday, March 31, 2017