Kitty Hawk, North Carolina

The name Kitty Hawk is derived from the native Algonquin Native American language word Chickahawk, meaning "a place to hunt geese".https://www.melanieday.com/areas/kitty-hawk {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211117220911/https://www.melanieday.com/areas/kitty-hawk |date=November 17, 2021 }} , https://www.outerbanks.com/kitty-hawk.html

Kitty Hawk became world-famous after the Wright brothers made the first controlled powered airplane flights at Kill Devil Hills, {{convert|4|mi|km|spell=in}} south of the town, on December 17, 1903. After the four flights in their Wright Flyer, the brothers walked back to Kitty Hawk. Here, they sent a telegram from the Weather Bureau office to their father informing him of their success.{{cite web |url = http://www.wdl.org/en/item/11372/ |title = Telegram from Orville Wright in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, to His Father Announcing Four Successful Flights, 1903 December 17 |website = World Digital Library |date = December 17, 1903 |access-date = July 21, 2013 }} Kitty Hawk is usually credited as the site of the powered flights because it was the nearest named settlement at the time of the flight; the modern town of Kill Devil Hills did not exist until 50 years after the flights. The Wrights chose the area because its frequent winds and soft sandy surfaces were suitable for their glider experiments, which they conducted over three years before they made the powered flights.

The Old Currituck Sound Bridge was completed in 1930, which connected the mainland to the Outer Banks across Albemarle Sound, prompting the paving of a road between the two existing bridges (the other in Manteo) and connecting the Outer Banks to the outside world by road for the first time.{{Cite web|title=Page 31|url=https://digital.ncdcr.gov/digital/collection/p249901coll22/id/39231/|access-date=January 26, 2022|website=digital.ncdcr.gov|language=en}}

The aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63), the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber AV-19 with an aircraft number of 93–1086, P-40D Kittyhawk fighter aircraft, the aircraft transport ship USS Kitty Hawk (AKV-1), and the Apollo 14 command module have been named for the town, which incorporated in 1981.

The Kitty Hawk Life-Saving Station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.{{NRISref|version=2010a}}

Kitty Hawk is located at {{Coord|36.1|N|75.7|W|type:city}} at an elevation of {{convert|7|ft|0}} above sea level. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a complete area of {{convert|8.23|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|8.18|sqmi|km2}} is land and {{convert|0.0476|sqmi|km2}} (0.579%) is water.[https://www.census.gov/tiger/tms/gazetteer/places2k.txt Census 2000 Gazetteer Files: Places] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061024071901/http://www.census.gov/tiger/tms/gazetteer/places2k.txt |date=October 24, 2006 }}. Retrieved on May 18, 2009.

According to the A. W. Kuchler U.S. potential natural vegetation types, Kitty Hawk, North Carolina would have a dominant vegetation type of Live oak/Sea Oats Uniola paniculata (90) with a dominant vegetation form of Coastal Prairie (20).{{cite web|url=https://databasin.org/datasets/1c7a301c8e6843f2b4fe63fdb3a9fe39|access-date=August 6, 2019|title=U.S. Potential Natural Vegetation, Original Kuchler Types, v2.0 (Spatially Adjusted to Correct Geometric Distortions)}}

Kitty Hawk is served by U.S. Route 158 and Highway 12, which parallel each other in the city. US 158 can be used to go west, while the barrier islands extend north and south.

According to the Trewartha climate classification system, Kitty Hawk, North Carolina has a humid subtropical climate with hot and humid summers, cool winters and year-around precipitation (Cfak). Cfak climates are characterized by all months having an average mean temperature > 32.0 °F (> 0.0 °C), at least eight months with an average mean temperature ≥ 50.0 °F (≥ 10.0 °C), at least one month with an average mean temperature ≥ 71.6 °F (≥ 22.0 °C) and no significant precipitation difference between seasons. During the summer months in Kitty Hawk, a cooling afternoon sea breeze is present on most days, but episodes of extreme heat and humidity can occur with heat index values ≥ 100 °F (≥ 38 °C). Kitty Hawk is prone to hurricane strikes, particularly during the Atlantic hurricane season which extends from June 1 through November 30, sharply peaking from late August through September. During the winter months, episodes of cold and wind can occur with wind chill values < 10 °F (< -12 °C). The plant hardiness zone in Kitty Hawk is 8b with an average annual extreme minimum air temperature of {{convert|16.6|°F|°C|abbr=on}}.{{cite web|url=https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/InteractiveMap.aspx|publisher=United States Department of Agriculture|access-date=August 6, 2019|title=USDA Interactive Plant Hardiness Map|archive-date=June 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210618111217/https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/InteractiveMap.aspx|url-status=dead}} The average seasonal (Dec–Mar) snowfall total is < 2 inches (< 5 cm), and the average annual peak in nor'easter activity is in February.

{{Weather box

| width = auto

| single line = Y

| location = Kitty Hawk, NC (1981-2010 Averages)

| Jan high F = 50.2

| Feb high F = 51.9

| Mar high F = 57.3

| Apr high F = 65.5

| May high F = 73.0

| Jun high F = 80.4

| Jul high F = 84.3

| Aug high F = 83.0

| Sep high F = 78.3

| Oct high F = 70.3

| Nov high F = 62.3

| Dec high F = 54.0

| year high F = 67.6

| Jan mean F = 43.8

| Feb mean F = 45.4

| Mar mean F = 50.3

| Apr mean F = 58.5

| May mean F = 66.5

| Jun mean F = 74.9

| Jul mean F = 79.2

| Aug mean F = 78.4

| Sep mean F = 73.8

| Oct mean F = 64.9

| Nov mean F = 56.3

| Dec mean F = 47.6

| year mean F = 61.7

| Jan low F = 37.4

| Feb low F = 38.8

| Mar low F = 43.4

| Apr low F = 51.5

| May low F = 60.1

| Jun low F = 69.4

| Jul low F = 74.1

| Aug low F = 73.8

| Sep low F = 69.2

| Oct low F = 59.5

| Nov low F = 50.3

| Dec low F = 41.2

| year low F = 55.8

| precipitation colour = green

| Jan precipitation inch = 4.23

| Feb precipitation inch = 3.50

| Mar precipitation inch = 3.86

| Apr precipitation inch = 3.41

| May precipitation inch = 3.73

| Jun precipitation inch = 4.29

| Jul precipitation inch = 4.97

| Aug precipitation inch = 5.94

| Sep precipitation inch = 5.26

| Oct precipitation inch = 3.79

| Nov precipitation inch = 3.68

| Dec precipitation inch = 3.71

| year precipitation inch = 50.37

| humidity colour = green

| Jan humidity = 69.9

| Feb humidity = 69.5

| Mar humidity = 67.4

| Apr humidity = 67.6

| May humidity = 70.2

| Jun humidity = 73.9

| Jul humidity = 75.3

| Aug humidity = 74.7

| Sep humidity = 73.5

| Oct humidity = 71.1

| Nov humidity = 72.0

| Dec humidity = 71.7

| year humidity = 71.4

| Jan dew point F = 34.6

| Feb dew point F = 36.0

| Mar dew point F = 39.9

| Apr dew point F = 47.8

| May dew point F = 56.5

| Jun dew point F = 66.0

| Jul dew point F = 70.7

| Aug dew point F = 69.7

| Sep dew point F = 64.8

| Oct dew point F = 55.3

| Nov dew point F = 47.4

| Dec dew point F = 38.9

| year dew point F = 52.4

|source 1 = PRISM{{cite web|url=http://prism.oregonstate.edu/explorer/|title=PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University|access-date=August 6, 2019}}}}

{{Weather box

| width = auto

| single line = Y

| location = Duck, NC Ocean Water Temperature (8 N Kitty Hawk)

| Jan mean F = 45

| Feb mean F = 44

| Mar mean F = 46

| Apr mean F = 59

| May mean F = 67

| Jun mean F = 74

| Jul mean F = 71

| Aug mean F = 74

| Sep mean F = 75

| Oct mean F = 69

| Nov mean F = 59

| Dec mean F = 52

| year mean F = 61

|source 1 = NOAA{{cite web|url=https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/dsdt/cwtg/all_meanT.html|title=Water Temperature Table of All Coastal Regions|access-date=August 6, 2019}}}}

{{US Census population

|1990= 1937

|2000= 2991

|2010= 3272

|2020= 3708

|estyear=2021

|estimate=3761

|estref={{cite web |title=City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2021 |url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-total-cities-and-towns.html |website=Census.gov |publisher=US Census Bureau |access-date=July 9, 2022}}

|footnote=sources:{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|title=Census of Population and Housing|access-date=April 5, 2013}}{{cite web|url=http://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|accessdate=June 4, 2016}}

}}

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,991 people, 1,265 households, and 866 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|365.8|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|people |people}}. There were 2,618 housing units at an average density of {{convert|320.1|/mi2|/km2}}. The racial makeup of the town was 98.13% White, 0.64% African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.20% from other races, and 0.50% from two or more races. 0.94% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 1,265 households, out of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 years living with them, 58.7% were married couples living together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.5% were non-families. 23.8% of all tribes were made up of individuals, and 8.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.79.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.5% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 31.6% from 25 to 44, 28.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 girls, there were 103.7 boys. For every 100 girls age 18 and over, there were 97.6 boys.

The median income for a household in the town was $42,813, and the median income for a family was $48,676. Males had a median income of $31,250 versus $25,744 for females. The per capita income for the town was $22,960. About 4.3% of families and 6.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.9% of people under age 18 and 4.6% of people age 65 or over.

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 3,689 people, 1,532 households, and 1,073 families residing in the town.

Federally, Kitty Hawk is part of North Carolina's 3rd congressional district, represented by Republican Greg Murphy since 2019.

Dare County Schools operates public schools serving the area. Kitty Hawk Elementary School is in the city.{{cite web|url=https://khe.daretolearn.org/|title=Home|publisher=Kitty Hawk Elementary School|accessdate=April 12, 2021|quote=16 S. Dogwood Trail, Kitty Hawk, NC 27949}}

The zoned secondary schools are First Flight Middle School and First Flight High School.{{cite web|url=https://www.daretolearn.org/resources/curriculum-and-instruction/register-for-school/attendance-zone-information|title=Attendance Zone Information|publisher=Dare County Schools|accessdate=April 12, 2021|quote=First Flight Middle School/First Flight High School – All areas north of Nags Head/Kill Devil Hills Town Line|archive-date=April 12, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412192543/https://www.daretolearn.org/resources/curriculum-and-instruction/register-for-school/attendance-zone-information|url-status=dead}} - [https://archive.today/20210412191750/https://drive.google.com/file/d/1S0hM-mpNCZL1Cy3GMQjTfI7oYGxQoeDe/view North Beaches Elementary Schools map] Prior to 2004 First Flight High zoned students were zoned to Manteo High School.{{cite news|url=http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=74478&ran=114163|title=NO LINES, NO CROWDS, JUST MORE SPACE|last=Freeman|first=Darren|date=August 18, 2004|publisher=The Virginian-Pilot|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040911212546/http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=74478&ran=114163|accessdate=October 25, 2009|archive-date=September 11, 2004}} - [http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=VP&p_theme=vp&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=10496717DD396A59&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM Entry at] NewsBank

• Coulaines in Pays de la Loire, France, which is about {{convert|1.7|mi|km}} north of Le Mans (signed in 2005)

{{Reflist}}

{{Wikivoyage|Kitty Hawk}}

{{commons category|Kitty Hawk, North Carolina}}

• {{official website|http://www.townofkittyhawk.org/}}

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{{Succession box

| title = Beaches of The Outer Banks

| years =

| with =

| before = Southern Shores

| after = Kill Devil Hills

}}

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{{Dare County, North Carolina}}

{{Outer Banks}}

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Category:Towns in Dare County, North Carolina

Category:Towns in North Carolina

Category:Beaches of North Carolina

Category:Outer Banks

Category:Beaches of Dare County, North Carolina

Category:Populated coastal places in North Carolina