Nags Head

History

Early maps of the area show Nags Head as a promontory of land characterized by high sand dunes visible from miles at sea. The origin of the town's name is obscure but it is likely to have been named after any one of the places called Nag's Head on the English coast. A folkloric explanation claims that mules or horses (nags) would have lights hung on their heads by nefarious wreckers in order to trick ships into running aground and then loot the ships of their valuables. The town's emblem depicts one such equine accomplice from the tale. Around 1830, Nags Head became known as a resort area. This direction was accelerated in 1855 when Dr. W. G. Pool bought 50 acres of oceanfront land which he separated into plots and sold to friends, increasing the number of homes in the area. Jockey's Ridge is the last vestige of the sand dunes seen by the first explorers, as the area is now highly developed. The town incorporated in 1961. In May 2021, Nags Head was one of 11 communities (along with nearby Ocracoke, North Carolina) chosen by the United States Department of Energy to participate in the Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project, a program to provide federal aid for remote communities to modernize their electric infrastructure and resiliency through natural disasters and outages. Nags Head's grant is used to secure 48–72 hours of backup energy for emergency services due to the community's vulnerability to severe weather and rising sea levels and to investigate renewable and energy efficiency options. According to Nag's Head's Director of Planning and Development Michael Zehner, the project will take 12–18 months to complete and the town will receive assistance from National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the Sandia National Laboratories. Nags Head received a…

Geography

Nags Head is located at (35.932004, −75.615085). According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 1.15%, is water. According to the A. W. Kuchler U.S. potential natural vegetation types, Nags Head, North Carolina would have a dominant vegetation type of Live oak/Sea Oats Uniola paniculata (90) with a dominant vegetation form of Coastal Prairie (20). According to the Trewartha climate classification system, Nags Head, North Carolina has a humid subtropical climate with hot and humid summers, cool winters and year-around precipitation (Cfak). Cfak climates are characterized by all months having an average mean temperature > 32.0&nbsp;°F (> 0.0&nbsp;°C), at least eight months with an average mean temperature ≥ 50.0&nbsp;°F (≥ 10.0&nbsp;°C), at least one month with an average mean temperature ≥ 71.6&nbsp;°F (≥ 22.0&nbsp;°C) and no significant precipitation difference between seasons. During the summer months in Nags Head, a cooling afternoon sea breeze is present on most days, but episodes of extreme heat and humidity can occur with heat index values ≥ 100&nbsp;°F (≥ 38&nbsp;°C). Nags Head is prone to hurricane strikes, particularly during the Atlantic hurricane season which extends from June 1 through November 30, sharply peaking from late August through September. During the winter months, episodes of cold and wind can occur with wind chill values < 10&nbsp;°F (< −12&nbsp;°C). The plant hardiness zone in Nags Head is 8b with an average annual extreme minimum air temperature of 16.9&nbsp;°F (−8.4&nbsp;°C). The average seasonal (Dec–Mar) snowfall total is < 2 inches (< 5&nbsp;cm), and the average annual peak in nor'easter activity is in February.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  8,437
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  7,752
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  7,675
• Yellow-rumped Warbler

  Setophaga coronata (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  7,210
• Brown Pelican

  Pelecanus occidentalis Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  6,934
• Laughing Gull

  Leucophaeus atricilla (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  6,914
• Boat-tailed Grackle

  Quiscalus major Vieillot, 1819 · Aves
  6,336
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  6,225

Largest nearby schools

• First Flight High School
  High · Kill Devil Hills · 956 students · 18:1 ratio
• Manteo Elementary School
  Elementary · Manteo · 660 students · 12.2:1 ratio
• First Flight Middle School
  Middle · Kill Devil Hills · 612 students · 13.3:1 ratio
• Manteo High School
  High · Manteo · 578 students · 15.2:1 ratio
• Nags Head Elementary School
  Elementary · Nags Head · 538 students · 12.8:1 ratio
• Manteo Middle School
  Middle · Manteo · 369 students · 12.3:1 ratio
• First Flight Elementary School
  Elementary · Kill Devil Hills · 320 students · 10.7:1 ratio
• Dare Learning Academy
  High · Nags Head · 20 students · 10:1 ratio