Hilton Head Island History

A History Timeline of Hilton Head Island

The following information and photographs were provided by the Coastal Discovery Museum.

A book entilted “Images of America Hilton Head Island” covers the Island’s history and is available for sale at the museum, (843)689-6767.

Native American Occupation 8000 B.C. - 1500 A.D.
8000 B.C. - 1000 B.C. - Archaic Period Native Americans visited this area seasonally.
1335 A.D. Green's Shell Enclosure, a 4-foot-tall shell ridge that encloses 2 acres, was built along the banks of Skull Creek.

European Explorers 1500 - 1700
1521 - A Spanish expedition, led by Francisco Cordillo, explored this area, initiating European contact with local tribes.
1663 - Capt. William Hilton sailed from Barbados, on the Adventure, to explore lands granted by King Charles II to the eight Lords Proprietors. Hilton Head Island takes its name from a headland near the entrance to Port Royal Sound.
1698 - John Bayley, of Ireland, was given most of Hilton Head Island as a barony. Twenty-four years later, his son appointed Alexander Trench as his agent in charge of selling the land.

Plantation Era 1700 - 1860
1711 - Beaufort, South Carolina was founded.
1760s - Beaufort County's shipbuilding industry was one of the largest in the 13 colonies. The deep-water creeks around Hilton Head and the prevalence of hardwoods (like live oak) made the island a popular place for shipbuilding. The USS Constitution, "Old Ironsides," was rebuilt in 1997 using live oaks felled during construction of Hilton Head Island's Cross Island Parkway.
1779 - Privateers sailing with the British navy burned many houses on Skull Creek and around the island on their way to Beaufort and Charleston. Hilton Head residents tended to be Patriots, while Daufuskie residents were Tories.
1780 - Daufuskie Islanders burned several Hilton Head homes, including the Talbird home.
1788 - The Zion Chapel of Ease, a small wooden Episcopal church for plantation owners was constructed. All that remains is the cemetery, home to the Baynard Mausoleum.
1790 - William Elliott II, of Myrtle Bank Plantation, grew the first successful crop of long-staple, or Sea Island, cotton in South Carolina on Hilton Head Island.
1813 - During the War of 1812, British forces landed on Hilton Head Island, burning many of the houses along Skull Creek.
1860 - There were more than 20 working plantations on the island before the Civil War.

The Civil War and the Union Occupation 1860 - 1865
1861 - Beginning in July, Fort Walker was built on Hilton Head Island at the entrance to Port Royal Sound in Order to protect the port from Union attacks.
1861 - On November 7th, Union forces attacked Fort Walker (later renamed Fort Welles in honor of Gideon Welles, secretary of the Navy) and Fort Beauregard in the Battle of Port Royal. Nearly 13,000 Union troops flooded onto the island in the days after the battle.
1862 - Hilton Head Island was also referred to as Port Royal, in reference to the Port Royal military installation. Port Royal was the home to the Department of the South.
1862 - Hilton Head's population swelled to over 40,000, including Union troops, civilian store-keepers, missionaries, prisoners of war, and slaves seeking refuge from their owners.
1862 - Gen. Ormsby Mitchel set up the town of Mitchelville to house the island's first freedman's village.
1862 - Fort Mitchel was built as a battery to protect Skull Creek from Confederate attacks. Fort Sherman, which circled the military installation, was completed.
1865 - The First African Baptist Church was founded in August.

Mainland Connection and Modern Era 1949-1990s
1958 - First deed to a lot in Sea Pines Plantation was signed. Beachfront lots initially sold for $5,350. By 1962, they were selling for $9,600.
1958 - Telephone service was offered by Hargray Telephone Company. The first Hilton Head office did not open until 1960.
1959 - The island's first golf course, the Ocean Course, designed by George Cobb, was built in Sea Pines Plantation.
1960 - The McIntosh family subdivided 360 acres of The Hilton Head Company to start Spanish Wells.
1961 - Port Royal Plantation was developed by Hilton Head Company, led by Fred Hack.
1965 - The Sea Pines Medical Center was built. It was staffed by a retired doctor who lived in Sea Pines but served the entire island community.
1965 - Hilton Head Island had its first rural mail route established.
1967 - Sea Pines Plantation installed the island's first gates. 1967 - The Palmetto Dunes area was acquired from the Hilton Head Agricultural Company by Palmetto Dunes Corporation, headed by William T. Gregory, for $1,000 per acre.
1967 - The Hilton Head Airport opened.
1969 - Harbour Town village was completed. The full-time population of the island was 2,500.
1969 - The first Heritage Golf Classic played at Sea Pines' Harbour Town Links.
1970 - Island Packet newspaper was first published. 1970 - The Hilton Head Company started Shipyard Plantation.
1971 - Sea Pines acquired land on the north end of the island, which was developed into Hilton Head Plantation.
1974 - The swing-bridge was struck by a barge which forced island residents to travel off the island on a pontoon bridge constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers. The bridge was closed for six weeks.
1975 - The island's full-time population by this time was 6,500. Over 250,000 visitors came to Hilton Head.
1975 - Hilton Head Hospital was completed.
1979 - Hurricane David missed the island, but high winds left beach eroded and destroyed several Singleton Beach homes.
1982 - A four-lane bridge was built to replace the two-lane swing-bridge to the island. The island's full-time population was 12,500.
More than 500,000 visitors came to Hilton Head in 1982. 1982 - Wexford Plantation and Long Cove Club were developed. 1983 - The Town of Hilton Head Island incorporated as a municipality.
1985 - Hilton Head's Comprehensive Plan was adopted by the town council. The population was over 17,000 full-time residents.
1987 - The town council passed the Land Management Ordinance of the Town of Hilton Head Island.
1989 - The Cross-Island Parkway project was approved. The Parkway's bridge spans Broad Creek and links the south end of the island to the north end. 1995 - The permanent year-round population exceeded 28,000 people. The island had over 1.5 million visitors.
1995 - Construction on the Cross-Island Parkway began.
1996 - The Master Land Use Plan for Ward One was started by the Town.
1997 - Cross Island Parkway opened in January. The total cost was $81 million for construction, land acquisition and planning.