Diamond Shoals Lighthouse: the lighthouse that never was

Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, is the elbow of an arm of low islands known as the "Outer Banks". This elbow pokes these barrier islands a good 25 miles into the Atlantic. Seven miles farther at sea are treacherous shifting underwater sand banks known as Diamond Shoals. In the days of sail the Diamond Shoals were one of the most feared spots of any ocean. The strong and wide Gulf Stream moving north at up to 4 knots from the Gulf of Mexico forced the south bound sailing ships to "go inside" or west of the stream to escape the current. Thus mariners had only a narrow band of water between the Gulf Stream and the Diamond Shoals in which to operate.