Kure Beach (Images of America)

Kure Beach derived its name from a Danish immigrant named Hans Anderson Kure Sr. He began acquiring land in the area in 1891, and by 1900, he had purchased 900 acres just south of Carolina Beach to Fort Fisher. He established the Kure Land and Development Company and in 1913 produced a map of Fort Fisher Sea Beach, which would later become Kure's Beach and eventually Kure Beach. In 1923, the first wooden fishing pier on the Atlantic coast was constructed by Lawrence Kure. DAN PRI, one of the first surfboard companies on the East Coast, was also established at Kure Beach. The area is rich in historical significance--from Verrazzano's discovery to Cape Fear Indians, pirates, lighthouses, the "Rocks," the Ethel Dow Chemical Plant, and the community's role in both the Civil War and World War II. Most cherished, though, are the people that loved living a relaxed, peaceful life in their "paradise."