Kill Devil Hills has an odd name but the story behind it brings to life the folk history of the area. Rum was the drink of choice back in the colonial times. A ship wrecked on the shores of Kill Devil Hills laden with a shipment of rum. The locals scavenged the shipment, as was customary in those days, and hid the rum behind the sand dunes where the Wright brothers later flew the first plane. The rum was strong enough to "Kill the devil" and those dunes where the rum was hidden was nicknamed Kill Devil Hill and the name has stuck like a sandspur.
On December 17, 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright made the first successful power-driven airplane flight from the sand dune known as the Kill Devil Hill near the town of Kitty Hawk. History records the first flight in Kitty Hawk but the location of the flight was actually in Kill Devil Hills.
Kill Devil Hills is the oldest town on the Outer Banks of North Carolina having incorporated in 1953. Still a baby of a town compared to most localities across the US, it is the most established town on the Outer Banks. Kill Devil Hills is comprised of 63 subdivisions/communities containing some 8,000+ parcels of which some 1,000 are vacant lots. According to the US Census Bureau, there are 10,500 year round residents. Kill Devil Hills has the highest percentage of year round residents of all the towns on the Outer Banks. This is where you will also find most of the restaurants, stores and ancillary services that a permanent population requires. There are also a large number of vacation homes making Kill Devil Hills the perfect location.
Bordered by Kitty Hawk on the north, Nags Head on the south, the Atlantic Ocean to the east and Kitty Hawk Bay to the west, Kill Devil Hills has 17 free public beach accesses on the ocean front, 2 sound accesses, 1 sound boat ramp, 2 children's play grounds, and a pleasant selection of beach houses. Kill Devil Hills is one of the most vacation friendly resort towns on the east coast.