Hilton Head Island
The barrier island a 1956 bridge turned into a resort town.
- Population
- 37,661 (2020 census)
- Incorporated
- 1983
- The name
- From Capt. William Hilton, 1663
- Tides
- Two highs, two lows a day
Then
- 4,000 years ago
Native peoples build the Sea Pines shell ring, a ring of shells about 150 feet across, in what is now Sea Pines.
- 1521
A Spanish expedition led by Francisco Gordillo explores the area.
- 1663
Captain William Hilton, sailing from Barbados, marks a headland near the entrance to Port Royal Sound. Mapmakers call it Hilton's Headland.
- 1861
On November 7, Union forces take Fort Walker in the Battle of Port Royal. The island becomes a base for the blockade of Savannah and Charleston.
- 1862
Under Maj. Gen. Ormsby Mitchel, Mitchelville is built on the north end for people freed from slavery. It elects its own officials and requires school for children 6 to 15, the first compulsory education law in South Carolina.
- 1956
The James F. Byrnes Bridge, a two-lane toll swing bridge, links the island to the mainland. Until then, the roughly 300 residents relied on private boats and a state ferry. Charles E. Fraser starts building Sea Pines the same year.
- 1969
The Heritage golf tournament, now the RBC Heritage, is first played at Sea Pines. It has been a PGA Tour stop ever since.
- 1983
Voters approve incorporation in May, and Hilton Head Island becomes a town.
Now
The island has about 41 square miles of land and ocean beaches along its Atlantic side. Coligny Beach Park is the main public beach, and Harbour Town, in Sea Pines, is anchored by its lighthouse.
Descendants of the people freed here, the Gullah (or Geechee), still live on the island. Historic Mitchelville Freedom Park marks the site of the town they built.
It is a retirement and vacation destination as much as a town: the median age was 59.3 in the 2020 census.
On the water
From NOAA's predictions for Braddock Point, Hilton Head Island, SC over the next 365 days. Heights are in feet above mean lower low water (MLLW).
- Pattern
- Two highs and two lows a day, close in size
- Typical daily range
- 7.0 ft
- Biggest swing
- 9.9 ft on Jan 23
- Smallest swing
- 4.5 ft on Mar 31
- Highest high
- 8.7 ft, Oct 27 at 9:20 AM
- Lowest low
- −1.8 ft, Jan 23 at 2:20 AM
Tide stations around Hilton Head Island
- Broad Creek, Hilton Head Islandin town
- Calibogue Cay, Broad Creek, Hilton Head Island2.8 mi
- Skull Creek, south entrance, Hilton Head Island3.2 mi
- Bull Island North3.7 mi
- Haig Point, Daufuskie Island, Cooper River5.2 mi
- Pinckney Island, Mackay Creek, Chechessee River5.6 mi
- Brighton Beach. May River5.8 mi
- Port Royal Plantation, Hilton Head Island5.9 mi