Brief Glimpse into Pine Knoll Shores' History

How it all started…

Substantial acreage on Bogue Banks (known then as "Isle of the Pines") was purchased by Alice Hoffman in 1918 where she made her home, off and on, until her death in 1953.

The property was willed to her niece, Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., and her four children. 

It was the Roosevelt family who envisioned the development of the town. 

How it progressed…

PKA and PIKSCO were the first homeowner associations and played a major role in the area's development with a major emphasis on it being a residential community ... as it remains today.

In January 1972 a public meeting was arranged at which a representative of the North Carolina League of Municipalities discussed the advantages of incorporation. 

The General Assembly ratified the Town Charter on April 25, 1973.  Pine Knoll Shores was then officially "The Town of Pine Knoll Shores".  The Atlantis Lodge provided a small space to serve as an office for town business soon thereafter. 

Later, the Roosevelts gave the town a little house (which had been part of Mrs. Hoffman's home) to serve as a town hall.  Then, in July 1974, the house was moved to a 25-acre plot on Pine Knoll Boulevard donated by the Roosevelts. 

The present town hall sits on the same 25-acre plot on Pine Knoll Boulevard. The first meeting took place in the newly constructed town hall on April 3, 1979. The official opening ceremony took place in May 1979.   

Continuing to grow...

Town services expanded with the addition of a public safety building located at 314 Salter Path Road.  The property and Wachovia Bank building were purchased and the building was renovated to house the Fire/EMS and Emergency Management Department along with the Police Department. 

The Public Safety Building was dedicated on December 14, 2003.  The celebration took on more meaning as citizens and town officials celebrated the 30th anniversary of the incorporation of the town along with the dedication of the building.

Working together...

Critical to the evolution of this community has been the contribution of the hundreds of dedicated volunteers who have given so freely of their time and talents and continue to give. Because of these caring, involved townspeople, a distinctive community has been created which today offers many advantages to its residents. 

The ambience of the town was created by the spirit of neighbor helping neighbor and this makes Pine Knoll Shores a community in the truest sense of the word.

Credits: This brief glimpse into the history of Pine Knoll Shores was created from information gathered from the Story of Pine Knoll Shores by Authors Mary Korff, Ken Hanan and Art Browne of the original work by Ken Haller and from town hall records.