Last month we posted a story about Bill Askren, a colorful and eccentric islander who learned about Ocracoke from the 1950 book by Norman Ford, Where to Retire on a Small Income. I ordered the book. Below are a few selected passages plus the section describing Ocracoke.

In Part 2, The Atlantic Seaboard, Ford writes, “Reaching seawards on the coast are North Carolina’s famed Outer Banks, a series of low, spray-swept, sandy islands offering tempting seclusion between sky, sea, and sound. Beach developments pushing south along the Banks have produced busy resorts in the north but farther south, along the new road to Hatteras, serene villages provide unhurried seashore living, often without benefit of jails, police, or local taxes…. Surf fishing is superb, the beaches flawless, the villages delightfully situated among live oak and yaupon, and the climate almost sub-tropical with orange and grapefruit growing as far north as Hatteras.”

Ford then touts the Outer Banks: “Of all the communities on the Outer Banks, two [Sea Level and Ocracoke] are outstanding both for scenic charm and atmosphere, and low living costs.

“Ocracoke, Pop. 600. If you’re looking for a perfectly delightful escapist isle where time has stood still for generations and life moves with the tides, 16 X 1 mile, low, sandy Ocracoke Island can be your retirement Eden. Whether you cross by ferry from Atlantic, N.C., or drive down from Hatteras, you’ll be introduced to an utterly fascinating new world of sea, sand, and sky where 600 fishermen and retired folk live in peaceful contentment without aid of bars, police, or jails. Ocracoke village beside Silver Lake Harbor rises picturesquely from a wealth of live oak, yaupon, and myrtle. It is the only village here. Ocracoke’s superb 16 miles of public beach, now a National Recreation Area, can never become private property. Here is the finest channel bass fishing in America, clamming, crabbing, swimming, square dances, riding, boating, duck and gees hunting, and believe it or not, very good gardening. The climate is North Carolina’s finest. Despite haulage charges on groceries, living costs can be very low. You’ll rave over the local oysters, crabs, fish, and clams. Small apts rent furn’d for $35 a mo., 2 b.r. cottages to $50. And get this: a new 2 b.r. home with lot will cost you $5-$7,000, Best of all, there are ample means for extra income. Carpenters, mechanics and electricians can usualy find work and there is need for a laundry with cleaning and pressing, a doctor and a boat hauling yard. For information, write: Civic club, Ocracoke, N.C.”

Of course, like everywhere else, Ocracoke has changed some in the last seventy-five years. We now have deputy sheriffs, a small jail, and several bars. And, prices have risen (imagine that!). But we still have unhurried living, superb fishing, delicious seafood, picturesque village homes and streets, delightful climate, and 16 miles of undeveloped ocean beach. No wonder Bill Askren decided to move to Ocracoke in the 1950s!