The 1875 Currituck Beach Light in Corolla, a community in North Carolina's Outer Banks, a 200-mile-long string of barrier islands and spits off the coast that locals like to call the "OBX." The lighthouse was not painted, leaving its brick facade visible. In 1939, it was automated following a merger of the United States Coast Guard with the Bureau of Lighthouses. Since 1991 visitors have been allowed to climb the original 220 steps to the outdoor gallery. Photo by Carol Highsmith.