Abandoned since 1971, North Carolina 'ghost island' preserved in time By (0) A swollen Potomac River covers the waterfront walkway and half of a gazebo in Alexandria, Va., after Hurricane Isabel slammed the East Coast on September 19, 2003. The storm caused major flooding along the Mid-Atlantic, including on the abandoned Portsmouth Island, N.C., which was abandoned in 1971. File Photo by Roger Wollenberg/UPI A cottage sits uninhabited in Portsmouth, N.C. Photo courtesy Robin Kent Pittman A watermark from a hurricane can be seen on the wall in an abandoned home in Portsmouth Island, N.C. Photo courtesy Robin Kent Pittman High-tide lines of recent storms can be seen on a wall in Portsmouth Island, N.C. Photo courtesy Robin Kent Pittman