<P> The treacherous waters off the coast of the Outer Banks is known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic, Over 600 ships wrecked here as victims of shallow shoals, storms, and war . Diamond Shoals, a bank of shifting sand ridges hidden beneath the turbulent sea off Cape Hatteras, has never promised safe passage for ships . In the past 400 years the graveyard has claimed many lives, but island villagers saved many . As early as the 1870s, villagers served in the US Life - Saving Service . Others staffed lighthouses built to guide mariners . Few ships wreck today, but storms still uncover the ruins of the old wrecks that lie along the beaches of the Outer Banks . </P> <P> Cape Hatteras National Seashore protects parts of three barrier islands: Bodie Island, Hatteras Island, and Ocracoke Island . Beach and sound access ramps, campgrounds, nature trails, and lighthouses can be found and explored on all three islands . </P> <P> The community of Buxton lies on the inland side of the Cape itself, at the widest part of Hatteras Island . It is the largest community on the island, and is home to the governmental offices and schools for the Island . </P> <P> Cape Hatteras is a bend in Hatteras Island, one of the long thin barrier islands that make up the Outer Banks . It is the site where the two great basins of the East Coast meet . The cape's shoals are known as Diamond Shoals . </P>

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