Photo courtesy of Ocracoke Preservation Society – Mike Riddick Collection
In 1938, Ocracoke was wired for electricity. A generator was housed in this concrete block building in what is now known as the Community Square. Currently, a retail store and ice cream shop occupy this building. Not only did this building contain the electric generator, it also served as a facility for producing ice, a valuable commodity used by fishermen to keep their catch cool for the journey to market. This photo was probably taken in the 1940s or 1950s.
The front of this building can be seen from the Community Square parking lot and can be seen in this photo. Judging by the position of the pickup truck, these two photos appear to have been taken within minutes of each other.
Photo courtesy of Ashley Reagan
The photo at the top was the subject of our History Hunt #2 contest. Our winner sent in a nice current photo of this building taken from the front walk of Mermaid’s Folly.