Throwback Thursday: When the Labor Day crowds left Wrightsville Beach in 1984

WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH, NC (WWAY) — For many people, Labor Day weekend marks the unofficial end of summer.

But for those who live and work at the beach, the end of the holiday weekend can mean something else: a welcome change of pace.

In 1984, WWAY cameras returned to Wrightsville Beach after the Labor Day crowds had gone home to see how locals were feeling about the quieter season ahead.

The difference was striking.

Just days earlier, the beach had been packed with people enjoying a hot summer afternoon. Now, the weather was cooler and gray, the beach was nearly deserted and parking spaces were easy to find.

For some local workers, the slowdown was more than welcome.

Department store clerk Mary Richardson said she was happy to see the busy summer season come to an end.

“I just feel that it’s great to be over with,” Richardson said. “It’s been a real busy season.”

The change was also noticeable at Wrightsville Beach motels, where summer guests had packed their bags and headed home.

Motel operator Annie Bright Peterson said business would continue through the fall, but the busiest part of the year was over.

For her, one of the clearest signs that summer had ended was the lifeguard station being turned over.

“Oh, as soon as they’re turning that lifeguard station over, you know the summer’s over,” Peterson said.

By September 1984, the sunscreen and crowds of summer were being replaced by a quieter beach and a different kind of activity.

As WWAY reporter Jeff Wiser put it at the time, “suntan oil is being replaced by metal detectors.”

Forty years later, the rhythm remains familiar. Labor Day may signal the end of summer for many visitors, but for beach communities, it also marks the beginning of a slower season enjoyed by many of the people who call the coast home.

The segment is part of a weekly Throwback Thursday series that features stories from WWAY’s historical news archives. That archive can be accessed here.