Surfside Beach
Murrells Inlet
Pawley’s Island
Garden City
Georgetown
Surfside Beach
Surfside Beach, incorporated in 1964 with 881 residents, is a town of 4,425 located in Horry (pronounced oh'-ree) County. We are located 4 miles South of Myrtle Beach and 85 miles North of Charleston.
First known as Roach's Beach, with only one two story building and several cottages surviving the hurricane of 1893, the region was purchased in the early 1920's. Principal industries were lumber and feed farming for the 30 or so horses and mules in the area. The new owner, Mr. George J. Holiday, renamed the area Floral Beach for his wife, Flora, and daughter, Floramay. In the late 1920's, a group from Columbia purchased and partially developed the land. In 1952, most of the land changed hands again and became known as Surfside Beach. The undeveloped beach area was covered with sand dunes; a one-lane sandy road led from the highway to a quiet, family beach.
Hurricane Hazel in 1954 destroyed 18 of the beach's 65 houses, but did not dampen the spirit of the developers. Lots were cleared, the sand was leveled, topsoil was brought in and T. J. Harrison, who later became the town's first mayor, opened the first grocery store in 1956 for the six permanent families and summer residents. Significant growth didn't happen until after 1956 when Myrtle Beach Air Force Base was reactivated. By 1964, our reputation as a family beach was further established and the town was becoming a popular place to retire. The new town government increased police protection, mosquito and sanitation control, and street lights and zoning ordinances resulted in increased property values. Public parking and walkways to the beach were established, and government offices were constructed just off Highway 17. Within the next few years, the town continued to grow through annexation. Improvements were made to streets and water lines and business and residential building boomed. Surfside Beach, as well as the rest of the Grand Strand, became one of the fastest growing parts of the country.
Surfside Beach History
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Murrells Inlet
History in our community began writing itself long before this area was officially named Murrells Inlet by the post office in 1913. The origin of this name remains a mystery with theories resting in passed-down legends of pirates and fishermen and incomplete records of landowners, plats and maps.
The pages of Murrells Inlet's past are graced with footprints of Native American tribes, 16th century Spanish explorers and English colonists in the 17th century. In the 1700s and 1800s large land tracts were cultivated into successful rice plantations. By 1850, almost 47 million pounds of rice were produced in the Waccamaw Neck, an area that includes Murrells Inlet. South Carolina rice planters were far wealthier and more powerful than the tobacco, sugar and cotton plantation owners of the southeast. One rice planter, Joseph Alston, even became South Carolina governor. Also in the 1800s, pirates sailed our coastline and hid in the Inlet's winding creeks, waiting to plunder England-bound ships.
People who summered in Murrells Inlet in the 1800s generally traveled to Conway or Georgetown by train, then picked up a steamboat that docked at the Wachesaw river landing. A horse and buggy or oxen cart carried travelers and their belongings to their cottages. The river steamboats were known for serving excellent food. Many of the steamboats' cooks settled in Murrells Inlet and opened their own restaurants, giving the area a reputation for savory cuisine long ago.
The Civil War came to Murrells Inlet's shores in 1863. Union warships attacked the Confederacy's blockade-runners that used the Inlet as a port to sneak cotton and other products to England in exchange for war materials, food and medicine. The war caused the decline of the rice culture. Though some rice plantations partially recovered, they could not survive the devastating hurricanes that followed. By 1916 the last remaining commercial rice grower was out of business.
By then, commercial fishing was a popular industry with catches shipped north on schooners. Recreational fishing also became part of the landscape. In 1914, captain-led fishing excursions out of the Inlet on 20-foot skiffs cost $5 per person for a day trip.
At the height of the Great Depression, Murrells Inlet's economy was spurred when Archer Milton Huntington from New York, spent millions of dollars to develop his 9,000-acre homestead and gardens. He hired local brick masons, painters, landscapers, carpenters and other craftsmen to create his dream of a Spanish castle. He even built a church, medical clinic and community center for the residents of Sandy Island, an island community between the Pee Dee and Waccamaw rivers. The Huntington home, Atalaya, was built with 22 fireplaces and 36 rooms, one of which was an oyster-shucking room. In their outdoor statuary gardens, his wife, Anna Hyatt Huntington, displayed her sculpting work, for which she was known nationwide. Theirs was a private estate until Mr. Huntington's death in 1955. Today, Atalaya is part of Huntington Beach State Park and their garden, now Brookgreen Gardens, is the largest showcase of American figurative sculpture in the country, displaying 68 of Mrs. Huntington's pieces, including the Fighting Stallions at the entrance.
More restaurants, marinas and private homes have emerged in our South Carolina village, but residents are not quick to forget what drew them here in the first place. Front-porch tales, ghost stories and a variety of local tours keep alive the history so deeply rooted in our marsh creeks, sandy banks and river landings. Names of local streets and neighborhoods are reminiscent of the people, plantations and cottages of yesteryear: Hermitage, Sunnyside, Vaux Hall and Wachesaw are but a few of the nostalgic familiarities that make Murrells Inlet the quaint seaside community it is today.
Murrels Inlet History
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Georgetown
Few other areas in America contain more history or charm than Georgetown, South Carolina. From its earliest beginnings as the probable site of the first European settlement in North America in 1526, to its present status as a vibrant and gracious city of 9,000, Georgetown has long been known for its warm hospitality and Southern charm.
The third oldest city in South Carolina, following Charleston and Beaufort, Georgetown was founded in 1729 and became an official port of entry in 1732. Prior to this, all foreign exports and imports had to pass through Charleston. Duties and the added freight had to be paid there. With the designation of Georgetown as a port of entry, the area's merchants and planters could deal directly with all ports, bypassing Charleston.
The first permanent settlers to the area were the English who were actively involved in the Indian trade. French and Scots settlers arrived shortly after and added to an expanding English contingent. During these early days of settlement most were either traders, planters or producers of naval stores.
From the years of early settlement, through the Revolutionary War and up to the advent of the Civil War, Georgetown flourished. Indigo and rice became the major crops of the area. Prior to the Revolution, the British Parliament encouraged the production of indigo with a bounty. The ready market for the blue dye enabled planters to make large fortunes quickly. With the advent of the Revolution, however, this bounty ended and the planters of the area turned to rice for their economic well being.
Georgetown played an active role in the American Revolution by sending Thomas Lynch, Sr. and Thomas Lynch, Jr. to the Continental Congress where the younger was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. British troops occupied Georgetown from July, 1780 to May, 1781. Many of the skirmishes between Francis Marion, the Swamp Fox, and British troops took place in Georgetown County.
As indigo was no longer profitable after the Revolution, the local planters turned to the production of rice. The many swamps and low-lying areas by the tidal rivers and the large labor supply made the cultivation of this crop highly profitable. By 1840, the Georgetown District (County) produced nearly one-half of the total rice crop of the United States and the port exported more rice than any port in the world. The local variety called "Carolina Gold" was in demand worldwide. This labor intensive crop provided great riches for the planters.
The Civil War changed the whole way of life for this region. The reconstruction period that followed was a social, political and economic upheaval. The rice crops following the war were failures, and rice could no longer support the economy of Georgetown. The combination of the disruption of the work patterns, competition from Southwestern rice growers, and several devastating hurricanes spelled the end of the once fabulous rice culture by the dawn of the twentieth century.
The need for an economic alternative to rice was met by lumber. The Atlantic Coast Lumber Company was incorporated in 1903. By 1914, it was the largest lumber producing plant on the East Coast. However, in 1932 ACL declared bankruptcy and Georgetown entered a period of immense economic decline. Recovery began in 1936 when International Paper Company built a plant here. By 1942 this plant had become the largest kraft paper mill in the world. Georgetown Steel and an array of other smaller plants have diversified Georgetown's industrial base. Commercial fishing has become a significant industry. In recent years, retirees and vacationers have contributed greatly to the well-being of the area. Tourism has become an increasingly significant element in the area's economy.
Georgetown's long history combined with its diversity of cultures, linkage to the sea, triumphs, defeats and revitalizations have all contributed to create an area known for its charm and beauty.
City of Georgetown
Chamber
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Pawley’s Island
Pawley’s Island, South Carolina, located 70 miles north of Charleston and 25 miles south of Myrtle Beach, is known as one of the oldest summer resorts on the East Coast.
The families of rice planters who owned plantations on the nearby rivers first settled Pawley’s Island in the early 1700's. The planters knew that it was unhealthy for their families to remain on the rivers during the summer and that the seashore was much healthier. Even though they didn't know about malaria in the 1700's, they knew enough to get away! They moved their families, horses, cows, bedding, provisions and furniture to Pawley’s in May of each year, where they remained until the first frost in November!
From this leisurely existence has developed the charm of Pawley’s that still remains. Also still remaining are 12 residences in the historic district, which date from the late 1700's to the mid 1800's. Pawley’s continues to be known for its shoeless, carefree, laid-back life style, which includes crabbing in the adjacent creeks, fishing, the stories of ghosts, the rope hammocks and the unspoiled, unsophisticated, casual, delightful stretch of wide beach and sand dunes.
The Civil War and several major hurricanes have changed the face of the island but it still retains the nickname "arrogantly shabby." Pawley’s is an island of simple virtues and lack of pretense.
In our historic district you will see a number of signs with a brief history of the antebellum homes. As you traverse our island you will note the variety of shapes and sizes of our beach houses, most of which are available for summer rental.
Often is heard the quote "we like the kind of people who like Pawley’s" and among these people is a special feeling of treasure shared.
Pawley’s Island is a barrier island less than 4 miles long and mostly 1 house wide, separated from the mainland by a beautiful salt marsh and accessible by two short causeways. Generations of visitors have returned with the feeling that "their blood pressure goes down when they cross the causeway."
Town of Pawleys Island
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Garden City
Garden City Beach is just Northeast of Murrells Inlet and South of Surfside Beach. Garden City Beach stretches from the tip of Surfside Beach in Horry County, all the way to the Garden City Point which is in Georgetown County and East of Murrells Inlet. Many families vacation along the sandy beaches of Garden City every year. Garden City Beach offers some of the best Surfing, Fishing and Crabbing along the Grand Strand.
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