By the early 1850s, a group of investors had been formed and incorporated a
land development project known as the "Shepard Point Land Company"
which purchased 600 acres (2.4 km) of land on the eastern tip of the
peninsula bordering the Newport River, known then as "Shepards
Point", which is the present day location of Morehead City. The Shepard
Point Land Company's objective was to take advantage of the natural deep channel
of Topsail Inlet, known today as the Beaufort Inlet, which splits Bogue Banks
and Shackleford Banks and provides access to Morehead City, Beaufort, North
Carolina, the Newport River and the