Currituck Club

[Kevin McCormack]

Years ago when my kids (now in their 40s) were little, we vacationed in Duck for a week and made many side trips besides going to the beach. One of mine was up to Corolla specifically to see the Whalehead Club. At that time it had just been put on the National Historic Preservation Register and funds had just been released for its restoration. I drove up, parked right in front, and wandered right into the building, which had not been touched since its last sale and near abandonedment in the late 1950s.

The place was swarming with local craftsmen, carpenters, painters, roofers, and various other restoration artists. A lady who happened to be the lead for the restoration project asked me who I was and if I knew anything about duck hunting. At the time I had been very active in Ducks Unlimited for around 15 years and had hunted waterfowl for nearly 30. Three hours later I think she learned more about the history and traditions of the place than had been researched up until that point in time: she wound up taking me on a personal tour of the place, and I shared with her a narrative of what I knew about Atlantic coastal waterfowl hunting.

When I left she gave me a brick from the foundation of the building and I purchased by donation one of the original copper shingles which were being sold to help finance the restoration. I went back about 12 years ago and toured the restored property, on which they did a fabulous job. My two favorite memories are the individual members' rooms which at that time had hardwood wainscoting on the bottom half of the walls and corduroy wall covering above, and the colorful tile facings of the fireplaces on the second floor. A true gem of a place and one of the very best dedicated waterfowling museums.