Beaufort County is a county in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 187,117. Its county seat is Beaufort and its largest town is Hilton Head Island.
Beaufort is a city in and the county seat of Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1711, it is the second-oldest city in South Carolina, behind Charleston. A city rich in history, culture, southern hospitality, and a seaside charm, Beaufort is affectionally known as the "Queen of the Carolina Sea Islands". The city's population was 13,607 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Hilton Head Island–Bluffton metropolitan area.
Bluffton is a town in southern Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. The population as of the 2020 census was 27,716, an increase of over 120% since 2010, making it one of the fastest growing municipalities in South Carolina. Bluffton is the fifth largest municipality in South Carolina by land area. It is primarily located around U.S. Route 278, between Hilton Head Island and Interstate 95. The Lowcountry town's original one square mile area, now known as Old Town, is situated on a bluff along the May River. The town is a primary town within the Hilton Head Island–Bluffton metropolitan area.
Hilton Head Island, sometimes referred to as simply Hilton Head, is a Lowcountry resort town and barrier island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. It is 20 miles (32 km) northeast of Savannah, Georgia, and 95 miles (153 km) southwest of Charleston. The island is named after Captain William Hilton, who in 1663 identified a headland near the entrance to Port Royal Sound, which mapmakers named "Hilton's Headland." The island features 12 miles (19 km) of beachfront on the Atlantic Ocean and is a popular vacation destination. In 2004, an estimated 2.25 million visitors infused more than $1.5 billion into the local economy. The year-round population was 37,661 at the 2020 census, although during the peak of summer vacation season the population can swell to 150,000. Hilton Head Island is the largest city within the Hilton Head Island–Bluffton metropolitan area, which had an estimated population of 215,908 in 2020.
Port Royal is a town on Port Royal Island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 14,220 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Hilton Head Island–Bluffton metropolitan area. Port Royal is home to Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island and United States Naval Hospital Beaufort.
Hardeeville is a city in Jasper and Beaufort counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 7,473 as of the 2020 census, an increase of over 150% since 2010. Hardeeville is included within the Hilton Head Island–Bluffton metropolitan area.
The University of South Carolina Beaufort is a public university with three campuses located in the Lowcountry region of South Carolina. It is part of the University of South Carolina System and enrolls about 1,900 students. The main campus is in Bluffton, South Carolina. The campus offers over 20 programs of study. The institution's campus in Beaufort houses the school's honor programs and the Department of Visual Arts & Design. The campus location on Hilton Head Island is home to the school's program for hospitality management.
St. Helena Island is a Sea Island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. The island is connected to Beaufort by U.S. Highway 21. The island has a land area of about 64 sq mi (170 km2) and a population of 8,763 as of the 2010 census. It is included as part of the Hilton Head Island-Beaufort Micropolitan Area. The island is renowned for its rural Lowcountry character and being a major center of African-American Gullah culture and language. It is considered to be the geographic influence behind the children's television program Gullah Gullah Island.
Daufuskie Island, located between Hilton Head Island and Savannah, is the southernmost inhabited sea island in South Carolina. It is 5 miles (8 km) long by almost 2.5 miles (4.0 km) wide – approximate surface area of 8 square miles (21 km2). With over 3 miles (5 km) of beachfront, Daufuskie is surrounded by the waters of Calibogue Sound, the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean. It was listed as a census-designated place in the 2020 census with a population of 557.
Hilton Head Airport is on Hilton Head Island, in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Also known as Hilton Head Island Airport, it is owned by Beaufort County.
Mitchelville was a town built during the American Civil War for formerly enslaved people, located on what is now Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. It was named for one of the local Union Army generals, Ormsby M. Mitchel. The town was a population center for the enterprise known as the Port Royal Experiment.
The Beaufort County School District educates nearly 22,000 students in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. It is the second fastest-growing county in the state.
The Penn Center, formerly the Penn School, is an African-American cultural and educational center in the Corners Community, on Saint Helena Island. Founded in 1862 by Quaker and Unitarian missionaries from Pennsylvania, it was the first school founded in the Southern United States specifically for the education of African-Americans. It provided critical educational facilities to Gullah slaves freed after plantation owners fled the island, and continues to fulfill an educational mission. Leigh Richmond Miner photographed students and activities at the school.
Liberty Colored High School is a former high school for African-American students in Liberty, South Carolina during the period of racial segregation. It originally was called Liberty Colored Junior High School. The building is now a community center known as the Rosewood Center. It is at East Main Street and Rosewood Street in Liberty. The school was built in 1937 on the site of a Rosenwald school that had burned down.
Lady's Island is a predominantly residential Sea Island located in Beaufort County, South Carolina. Small portions of the island are within the City of Beaufort, while the majority of the island remains unincorporated. The South Carolina Highway 802, also known locally as Sams Point Road, serves as the principal highway for Lady's Island and provides the only access to Coosaw Island.
Hilton Head Island High School is a public high school within the Beaufort County School District, located in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, United States. The high school serves students on the island in addition to some students living in Bluffton through the Beaufort County School District "school choice program".
Green's Shell Enclosure is a historic archeological site located at Hilton Head Island, Beaufort County, South Carolina. The site includes one of 20 or more prehistoric Indian shell middens in a ring shape located from the central coast of South Carolina to the central coast of Georgia. They are believed to date early in the second millennium BC, and they contain some of the earliest pottery known in North America.
Bridges Preparatory School is a public charter school within the South Carolina Public Charter School District, located in Beaufort, South Carolina, United States. The school serves students from most parts of Beaufort County. It enrolled 700 students in the 2017–18 school year.
Campbell Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church is a historic church and congregation in Bluffton, South Carolina.
