The Outer Banks of North Carolina attract those with a conviction to dream and do. Explorers, pirates, lifesavers and the world’s first pilots decorate the halls of local history. Some of the Outer Banks’ greatest accomplishments are due to daring women who pushed the odds. Eleanor Dare created a new life amid a doomed colonial expedition, Chrissy Bowser found her freedom as the Civil War rocked Roanoke Island and Irene Tate watched the Wright brothers assemble their glider in her front yard and then went on to become a record-setting pilot herself. The women in this book fought for their home. They stepped outside the traditional roles of their day and age, seeking to preserve the area’s history and heritage. They saved sand dunes and moved lighthouses. Local author Hannah Bunn West tells their stories.
Hannah Bunn West has a degree in creative nonfiction from the University of North Carolina–Wilmington as well as a teaching certificate from UNCW’s Watson School of Education. She has taught at the elementary and high school levels and is a mother of two. Born and raised on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, she is a freelance writer passionate about sharing the area’s beauty and rich history with others. She writes about the stories, successes and human experiences of the people who inhabit these enchanting barrier islands with the hope to advocate and inspire. This is her first book.