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Louis T. Moore Collection

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Louis T. Moore Collection

Wrightsville Beach - Lumina.

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Wrightsville Beach - Lumina.

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Title	Wrightsville Beach - Lumina.
Subject	Wrightsville Beach, Beaches, Lumina, Lumina Pavilion, Movie Screen
Description	View from the upper story of the famous pavilion, looking east at bathers in the ocean. Note movie screen at extreme left. Wrightsville Beach was named for Joshua Grainger Wright (1758-1811) who owned a vast amount of acreage along the sounds and the coast. The beach is a part of the North Carolina Banks, a chain of barrier islands, which spans almost all of the North Carolina coast from Virginia to South Carolina. Until the latter half of the nineteenth century, development along the immediate coast was hindered by an inadequate transportation system. In the 1870s, the Shell Road (or Wilmington Turnpike) was built from Wilmington to Wrightsville Sound, making the area more accessible. In 1888, a railway was constructed from downtown Wilmington to the Hammocks (Harbor Island). The same year, the Sea View Railroad was built from the Hammocks to the beach, opening up the beach's southern extension to development. The Town of Wrightsville Beach was incorporated in 1899. In 1901, the beach car line from Wilmington to Wrightsville Beach was sold by the Wilmington and Seacoast Railroad to the Consolidated Railways, Light and Power Company (later the Tidewater Power Co.) and shortly thereafter, the line was converted from steam to an electric line. At the line's southern terminus on the beach, the electric company constructed a large dance and amusement pavilion, Lumina. The name was a manufactured name, derived from the Latin word for light, which was appropriate since the exterior of the building was outlined by over six hundred incandescent lights. Opened June 3, 1905, Lumina quickly became the "fun spot of the south." Nationally known bands played each summer in the orchestra shell in the famous ballroom. Until about 1930, silent movies were shown on a screen, which was built in the ocean breakers. Lumina was a popular tourist attraction for most of the next six decades. It was razed in 1973.
Source	Louis T. Moore Collection 374