Research notes on the histories of fire departments and fire stations in Dare County, North Carolina. Last updated March 31, 2024.
Former fire stations. Left to right, top to bottom: Manteo, Nags Head, Kitty Hawk, Kitty Hawk, Southern Shores (demolished), Southern Shores (demolished), Avon, Buxton, Salvo (Demolished).
Fire Department Histories
See these research notes (PDF) for extensive information.
Fire Stations – Visual History
Fire Stations – Research Notes
| Department | Address | Built | Opened | Closed | Notes |
| Avon | 40105 Harbor Road | 1972 | 1972 | 2001 |
Moved 2001 to current location [CT, 9/20/01] Presently private owned, commercial business. |
| Avon | 40159 Harbor Road | 2000-2001 | 2001 [CT, 9/20/01] | current | |
| Buxton | 47095 Highway 12 | 1978? | 1978? | 2019? |
Relocated 2019? across the highway. Still standing. Still used by FD for apparatus storage. Additional structures on site, added later, including two-story frame building. |
| Buxton | 47152 Highway 12 | 2019? | 2019? | current | |
| Chicamacomico Banks – North | TBD | TBD | TBD | 1981 [ CT, 5/21/81 ] | |
| Chicamacomico Banks – North | 24297 State Highway 12 | 1980-1981 | 1981 [CT, 5/21/81] | current | |
| Chicamacomico Banks – South | 27209 Roth Road | 2009 | 2017 | current | |
| Coast Guard stations | Various | ||||
| Colington | 108 Schoolhouse Road | current |
Originally a substation of Kitty Hawk FD, opened 1971. Second story added [goes here]. Additional bays added [goes here]. |
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| Dare Beaches Sanitary District – Kitty Hawk Truck | 4622 N. Virginia Dare Trail | 1959 | 1959 | 1960? |
Kitty Hawk withdrew from DBSD in 1960 Became Kitty Hawk FD |
| Dare Beaches Sanitary District – Nags Head Truck | Housed at the old Army radar base, which was located near present day Nags Head town hall. | Demolished. | |||
| Dare County Regional Airport | 410 Airport Road | current | Fire apparatus on site since [TBD]. | ||
| Duck | 1259 Duck Road | 1982-1983 | 1983 | current | 19__ – Expanded with additional bays. |
| Frisco | 52470 Highway 12 | 1978-1979 | 1979 [CT, 1/9/79] | current | |
| Hatteras | 57717 Highway 12 | 1959? | 1959? | current |
1987 – Second story added [CT, 9/6/87] 1992 – Addition/expansion [CT, 1/21/92] |
| Kill Devil Hills | 800 S. Virginia Trail | 1948 [tax] | 1955 [CT, 4/8/55] | 1965 [CT, 7/12/94] |
Later opened in 1986 as Mex-Econo. [CT, 7/12/94] |
| Kill Devil Hills | 1634 N. Croatan Highway | 1962-65 | 1965 [CT, 9/10/65] | current |
19__ – Apparatus bays moved from left side to right side of structure. 19__ – Station expanded. |
| Kitty Hawk | 4622 N. Virginia Dare Trail | 1959 | 1959 | 1975 | Created as the Kitty Hawk company of the Dare Beaches Sanitary District FD. |
| Kitty Hawk | 965 W. Kitty Hawk Road | 1975 | 1975 [CT, 11/20/75] | 2007 | 1986 – Expanded with two bays. [CT, 11/18/86]
Current public works |
| Kitty Hawk | 859 W. Kitty Hawk Road | 2005-2007 | 2007 | current | |
| Manns Harbor | 6677 Old Highway 64 | 1976 | 1976 | current | Remodeled 1976 to house two trucks instead of one. |
| Manteo | Water Street, shed at the end of [Daily ECI, 8/9/37] | TBD | TBD | 1937 | Demolished? |
| Manteo | Behind the bank [Daily ECI, 8/9/37] | TBD | 1937 | 1941 |
Location was “almost directly in the center of the business district.” Demolished? |
| Manteo | 309 Budleigh Street | 1941 | 1941 [N&O, 6/2/41] | 1957, circa | Renamed Roanoke Island FD
Still standing, private residence |
| Nags Head – North | Old Army radar base, see Dare Beaches Sanitary District | ||||
| Nags Head – North | 3700 S Virginia Dare Trail | 1962-63 | 1963? | 1989 |
Created as the Nags Head company of the Dare Beaches Sanitary District FD. |
| Nags Head – North | 5314 S. Croatan Highway | 1989 | 1989 [CT, 4/18/89] | current | Still standing, now ocean rescue station |
| Nags Head – South | 8806 Old Oregon Inlet Road | 2005-2006 | 2006 [CT, 2/19/06] | current | |
| National Parks Service | Various |
Fire equipment locations over the decades included Fort Raleigh, Wright Brothers Memorial Site, and the three islands on the national seashore. |
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| Naval Auxiliary Air Station Manteo | Current Dare County Regional Airport | 1943 | 1943 | 1947 | Airfield had fire department. |
| Naval Facility Cape Hatteras (Buxton) | Highway 12, just north of Cape Hatteras Lighthouse | 1956 | 1956 | 1982 |
Base had a fire department. Site later occupied by Coast Guard. Demolished. |
| Roanoke Island – North | 309 Budleigh Street | 1942 | 1957, by that time | 1990 |
Renamed from Manteo FD. 1976 – Remodeled to house two trucks instead of one. [CT, 4/27/76] |
| Roanoke Island – North | 917 N. Virginia Trail Road | 1990 | 1990 | current | |
| Roanoke Island – South | Old Schoolhouse Road | 1976 | 1976 [CT, 5/18/76] | 2010 |
The original Wanchese station was described as two-story building with two bays on the bottom floor and a meeting room with cooking facilities above. Site of (or former building of?) old Wanchese School [ CT, 7/31/75 ] Demolished. |
| Roanoke Island – South | 323 Old Schoolhouse Road | 2010 | 2010 | current | Moved 2010 to current location, next door |
| Salvo | 27209 Roth Road | 1967c | 1967c | 2009 |
Replaced with newer station on same site. Demolished. |
| Salvo | 27209 Roth Road | 2009 | 2009 | 2017 | Merged with Chicamacomico Banks FD in 2017. |
| Southern Shores – East | 28 E. Dogwood Trail | 1971 | 1971 | 2024 |
Originally a substation of Kitty Hawk FD. In April 1982, both the Southern Shores and Colington substations separated from KHFD. [CT, 6/24/82 ] Demolished. |
| Southern Shores – East | 28 E. Dogwood Trail | 2024 | 2024 | current | Replaced with newer facility, co-located with Dare County EMS. Built as an EMS station. |
| Southern Shores – South | 15 S. Dogwood Trail | 1989 | 1989 [CT, 7/18/89] | 2010 | Demolished. |
| Southern Shores – South | 15 S. Dogwood Trail | 2010 | 2010 | current | Replaced with newer facility. |
| Stumpy Point | Bayview Drive | 1983 | 1983 [CT, 8/4/83] | 2000 | Located beside community center. |
| Stumpy Point | 255 Bayview Drive | 2000 | 2000 [CT, 11/12/00] | current |
Abbreviations
- CT – Coastland Times
- inc – Incorporated
Sources
- Coastland Times digital archives – Site #1 | Site #2
- Selected newspaper clippings, saved to this Google Drive
- Research notes (PDF) about Roanoke Island and Dare Beaches Fire Departments, based on “Chronology of the Dare Beaches Fire Departments” prepared by Charles Gaeta, Southern Shores Volunteer Fire Department, August 1991. Those notes are in the collection of the Outer Banks History Center.