Fodor's Expert Review Chicamacomico Life-Saving Station

This restored lifesaving station is now a museum that tells the story of the brave people who manned 29 stations that once lined the Outer Banks. These were the precursors to today's Coast Guard, with staff who rescued people and animals from seacraft in distress. Eight incredibly well-preserved buildings (given the frequency of hurricanes here) on 7 acres include a cookhouse, bathhouse, stables, workshop, and the original 1874 lifesaving station. You'll see original equipment and tools, artifacts, and exhibits. A 1907 cottage moved to the site portrays 19th- and early-20th-century life along the Outer Banks.

"Chicamacomico" is an Algonquin word meaning "land of shifting sands."