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Bald Head Island, historically Smith Island, is a village located on the east side of the Cape Fear River in Brunswick County, North Carolina, United States. Compared to the city of Wilmington to the north, the village of Bald Head Island is small and somewhat remote. It is only accessible by ferry from the nearby town of Southport. There are few cars on the island; instead, residents drive modified electric golf carts. Bald Head Island is nationally recognized for its sea turtle nesting activity. The population of the village was 158 at the 2010 census.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 title=Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Bald Head Island village, North Carolina )〕 The village is part of the Wilmington metropolitan area. The village is revered for its picturesque nature and is a popular location for vacationing. It was the primary filming location for the successful film ''Weekend at Bernie's'' in 1989, as well as being a major location in ''The Butcher's Wife'' in 1991. "Old Baldy", its out-of-service lighthouse, is the oldest still standing in the state, built in 1817. ==History== Bald Head Island is tiny but has played a part in two American wars. During the American Revolution, it was home to Fort George, a British fort. During the Civil War, the same redoubts served as Fort Holmes, a Confederate base of importance to shipping and smuggling. Located at the tip of Cape Fear and residing at the convergence of the Cape Fear River and Atlantic Gulf Stream, the land mass of Bald Head Island ends, trailing off into of treacherous sand bars known as Frying Pan Shoals. In this area, large sand bars seasonally emerge from and subsequently retreat into the sea. These topographical transformations are often as rapid as they are drastic. The consensus view is that Bald Head Island emerged from one such sandbar, stabilized by a succession of plant life, leading to a permanent land mass.〔Smith Island and the Cape Fear Peninsula; 1964; Arthur W. Cooper and Sheafe Satterthwaite〕〔Bald Head: A history of Smith Island and Cape Fear; 1985; David Stick; Barefoot Publishing Company〕 Author David Stick surmises that Native Americans used Bald Head Island in much the same way that it is used now, as a seasonal retreat. Bald Head Island's creek estuaries and its abundance of shellfish were probably as attractive to Native American fishermen as they are to modern fishermen. Shellmounds found on Middle Island and Bluff Island indicate that Native Americans did visit the Smith Island complex, but disease and war killed off most of the Native American population, so it is difficult to know much about the original inhabitants.〔 Throughout the early European history of the Cape Fear region, Bald Head Island underwent several settlement attempts and went by many names. Unlike the specific landmarks which were renamed by each settler, the region was always known by the well-earned name, "Cape Fear". Though Spanish sailors probably frequented the island on their way to intercept the Gulf Stream off Cape Hatteras, Pedro de Quexos was the first documented explorer of the region in the 1520s, naming what is now the Santee River the "River Jordan." Quexos' sponsor, Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón, visited the region himself in 1526. When Ayllón lost a ship to the treacherous shoals he abandoned his exploration efforts.〔 Over one hundred years after Quexos, William Hilton initiated an expedition called the "Adventures about Cape Fayre" by English Puritan dissidents in the 1660s. The effort was abandoned due to difficulties farming the sandy barren soil. Hilton returned in 1667 with the support of backers from Barbados, the "Barbados Adventurers", aboard a ship, the ''Adventure'' (now the name of one of the Bald Head Island ferries). His efforts were again foiled by barren soil.〔 In 1664, John Vassal founded "Charles Town" with the aid of Barbadian backers on the west bank of what is now the Cape Fear River (which Vassal named the "Charles River"). His efforts failed due to his agitation of the native population. He was further dissuaded when his efforts to become governor of the region, Clarendon County, were subverted and the title was given to John Yeamans. After the settlers abandoned Charles Town, Yeamans nearly lost his life when his boat sank in a maze of sand bars in the mouth of the Charles River. Instead of trying to revive the colony, Yeamans established Charles Town farther south in what is now Charleston, South Carolina.〔 Charleston rapidly became a center of economic importance in the colonies. Charleston businessmen often engaged in trade with Native Americans in the vicinity of Cape Fear, reaping such prosperity that they had to pay special duties. Duties created political conflicts which ultimately led to the colony of the Carolinas being divided in 1710 along the Cape Fear River (named the "Clarendon River" by then). In 1713, to help establish the northern colony's claim along the eastern bank, Thomas Smith, son of former Carolina governor Thomas Smith, Sr. was issued a land grant to what we now call Smith Island (called "Cape Island" at the time).〔 In 1776, Bald Head Island was briefly involved in the Revolutionary War after British Major General Henry Clinton and Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis used the island as a staging area for their voyage to Charleston, South Carolina. The British left behind a small garrison of troops with a few naval vessels to help keep the port closed to Continental shipping. The garrison of about 30 troops, under the command of Captain John Linzee, created Fort George (after King George) on the southwestern corner of Bald Head Island. Continental Brig. General Robert Howe was stationed across the river in Fort Johnson. After watching the British carefully, the Continentals launched a raid of 150 men on September 6, led by Col. Polk, against Fort George. Polk's men captured five British sailors but were forced to flee when the remaining 25 took cover and the British vessels moored just off-shore opened fire and initiated pursuit. Polk used local knowledge, fleeing through a maze of shallow creeks, and escaped with only minor casualties (1 killed, 1 wounded). By October, the British troops withdrew and Bald Head saw no further action during the Revolution.〔http://www.carolana.com/NC/Revolution/revolution_ft_george_bald_head_island.html〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Bald Head Island, North Carolina」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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