As early as 1850, visitors noticed old cemeteries and “ghost forests” uncovered by the shifting sands. Elsewhere, the sands entombed more trees and structures. 

…Fifteen hundred WPA and Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) workers were employed to build the fences. …Working seven days a week, with Sunday afternoons off, the young men built fences with timber and brush, and installed them along the contour of the shoreline. The fences stopped the blowing sands, allowing dunes to form and grow. The workers then planted grasses — beach grass, sea oats, cordgrass, and wire grass — along with shrubs and tree seedlings to fortify the dunes, which ranged from 10 to 25 feet in height.

…Scientists discovered that, despite the dunes, erosion and flooding had continued, and the ocean tide had inched closer to properties. Apparently, the dunes served a reverse purpose by blocking sound waters from rushing back to the ocean. Dune construction was officially halted.

The History of the Outer Banks Dunes — Our State Magazine

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