the north end of South Beach and possibly threaten the mainland shoreline in the
vicinity of and to the south of the lighthouse. If the 140-year cycle continues, this
South Beach will eventually retreat west and south and weld to the Morris Island
and North Monomoy Island shore. This would leave the Town of Chatham main-
land shore open to wave and tidal forces until Chatham Inlet and Nauset Spit
migrate south and reform the barrier spit. The use of some alternate disposal sites
may require non-Federal coast sharing. The continued placement of sand on the
beach at Andrew Hardings Lane and the beach in front of the Chatham Light-
house is also recommended to protect the upland property in this area as the main-
land beach evolves in response to the inlet migration. Additional disposal of
material on the seaward edge of the ebb shoal (in around 10 ft (3.1 m) of water
depth) is also possible. This nearshore disposal site will keep material in the
littoral zone and allow sand bypassing to continue to the South Beach area.
It is difficult to predict accurately the evolution of the shoreline and inlet over
the next 50 years, but by examining the patterns of shoreline adjustment from the
past cycle, a general idea of the change can be achieved. A review of historic
shoreline evolution from the 1850s to the 1920s (Weishar, Stauble, and Gingerich
1989) indicated that the last breach occurred in 1846 approximately 2 miles
(3.2 km) to the north of the present inlet (just off Allen Point at the southern end
of Pleasant Bay). For some 20 to 30 years the ebb and flood shoals of this new
inlet developed. The South Beach barrier island was deprived of this normally
uninterrupted southerly sand transport and experienced accelerated erosion, and
decreased island width in the vicinity of the Town of Chatham (Figure 57). In
November 1871, a new second breach cut through this low barrier just opposite
the then twin Chatham Lights (almost in the same position as the 1987 breach).
The 1873 shoreline has distinct similarities to the present inlet configuration of the
early 1990s. By the early 1880s, this sand-starved island had breached in numer-