The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1959-04-24
COUNTY
REPORT
DAVID STICK
Dare County Commissioner.
Atlantic Township

With Pirate JamDOree WeSh Gnu
here again / am reminded how
many Dare County people seem to
have forgotten the purpose OF this
annual celebration, or never really
understood it in the first place.
Last year, for example, over
heard a tourist ask a prosperous
beach store owner why everybody
was dressed up in costume. The
store owner replied: cts just al
bunch of grown up kids, out for a
good time"
This year l heard another bust
nessman say that he didn't make
any money during Jamboree week
end last spring, so he didn't see
any sense in supporting it this
year. And even after five years it
seems to me that most Dare Com-
ty people think this beard growing
business is a lot of foolishness.
All of these people fail to get
the idea.
The tourist business is our
bread and butter, but we have been
handicapped for years by tradi-
tional season which began Memo
rial Day weekend, and ended Labor
Day.
Four years ago a group of bust
ness people and civic leaders got
together to try to figure out some
way to extend our tourist season.
Two factors We're clear, l think, to
everyone who attended the meet
ing:
If a three-month season is
extended to four months, it is
practically the same as a 30-unit
motel being increased in size to
40 units, but without the extra
cost.
although few people could ex-
pect, in May, the business they
get in July and August, the May
business can mean just as much
profit to them because a large
part of the income in the middle
of the summer is needed to pay off
the investment, taxes, repairs and
operating costs.
The problem, however, was how
to get people who were accustomed
to a June-July-August season to
realize that our business establish
ments and resort facilities were
open in May; and how to convince
them that May is frequently the
incest month of the year for va
cation in Dare County.
Someone suggested that efforts
be made to change the date of the
annual celebration at the Wright
Memorial from December 18th to
April 18th, but this was ruled out
for obvious reasons. Then some
one else said, "Let's put on the
worlds biggest fish fry" and
another suggested that we have
big costume dance. Others
thought the answer would be to
have beach buggy races, or nag
races on the sand dunes, or boat
races, but the trouble with each
of these ideas was that no single
event would be big enough to get
the publicity needed to accomplish
the purpose.
That's when the suggestion was
made to combine all the ideas, and
more; to put on countrywide,
weekend-long celebration, with one
event following another, continu-
Gus succession of events, day and
night, for three days. In order to
get nationwide publicity it was
agreed that all of /us-everybody
in Dare County, if possible
should be dressed in colorful cos
tunes throughout the celebration,
and because of the pirate history
of the area the pirate theme was
suggested. And the thing that re-
ally wrapped it up, of course, was
. the proposal that all men in the
county should grow boards
throughout the winter, so that the
place would be overrun with
bearded, costumed Dare County
pirates.
In less than four hours that af-
ternoon in the winter of 1866
these people concerned with devel-
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