The U.S. Coast Guard had transferred custody of the reservoir to the park service. The reservoir, a cylindrical tank made entirely of brass, had been on display until recently in the Bodie Island Lighthouse’s Visitors Center with a sign telling visitors that similar reservoirs were used to hold oil for the lighthouse lamp. The keeper replenished the oil supply each evening with fuel. Henry Lepaute, a lens manufacturer in Paris, may have made the reservoir. Originally it would have had a crank and weighted plunger that would have raised oil to the lamp inside the lens.

Agresto and Doug Stover, cultural resources specialists for the Park Service, were working on the Bodie Island Lighthouse lens last fall when they decided the reservoir should be exhibited at Currituck Beach Lighthouse.

The Outer Banks Conservationists Inc., which owns the lighthouse, and NPS agreed to a formal loan for an initial period of three years (2010-2013) with hopes that eventually the oil reservoir will become a permanent part of the Currituck Beach Lighthouse’s exhibits.

The container will be displayed in the Currituck Beach Lighthouse beginning on March 29 when the lighthouse opens daily for visitation and climbing.

Article provided by The Daily Advance