Davis Island wasn't always an island. In the early 1900s, a hurricane cut a path through a peninsula that stuck out into Core Sound, separating a stately home from the mainland.

Years later, a man achieved his childhood dream of living in that home. What he found was peace and beauty, and a love story that came to him, in an isolated place, with an unexpected knock on his door.

We traveled to the North Carolina coast to tell the story of a remote island, a chance meeting, and a man who's trying to save a special place from an uncertain future.

• Watch a 7-minute documentary on Davis Island from Our State Short Films.
• Sign up for our upcoming Away Message newsletter.

James Mieczkowski: reporter, producer

Jeremy Markovich: producer, mixer, host

Elizabeth Hudson: editor-in-chief

Music in this episode:

• "Breathe Till I'm Full" by The Collection

Special thanks to the Humber family.