The Beaufort/Fripp Island, South Carolina area is a great place for a second home!!
Beaufort is a city in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States, situated on the Beaufort River. 304 acres of the town have been designated a National Historic Landmark. The city-limit population was 12,950 in the 2000 census (46,227 total pop. of Beaufort Urban Cluster). It is the county seat of Beaufort CountyGR6 and part of the Hilton Head Island-Beaufort Micropolitan Statistical Area. The current Mayor, Bill Rauch, was at one time the advance press man for New York Mayor, Ed Koch.
Beaufort (pronounced "BYU-furt" unlike its counterpart in North Carolina) is located on Port Royal Island, in the heart of the Low Country.
Beaufort and the surrounding area is rich in history. Parris Island was the location of France's first colony in the New World, founded by Jean Ribaut in 1562 shortly after the Spanish colonized St. Augustine, Florida The colony was abandoned in 1564. The first Scottish settlement in what is now the United States, known as Stuart Town, was founded on Port Royal Island in 1682, only to be destroyed by Spanish forces in 1684.
Beaufort was chartered in 1711 and is known as the second-oldest city in South Carolina, after Charleston. It was part of the Carolina colony and was governed by Lords Proprietors.
Today, Beaufort has a substantial Marine Corps presence, with MCRD Parris Island and MCAS Beaufort.
Beaufort has one local television station, WJWJ-TV (PBS).
Beaufort has been the setting for several novels by native son Pat Conroy, and a popular filming location for major motion pictures, including The Big Chill, The Prince of Tides, The Great Santini, Forrest Gump, Something To Talk About and GI Jane
Fripp Island is a 6.546 sq mi (16.954 km²) island just off the coast of the U.S. state of South Carolina, located along the Atlantic Ocean about halfway between Charleston, South Carolina and Savannah, Georgia. The most seaward of the South Carolina Sea Islands, Fripp Island is renowned for its scenic beauty and island resort amenities.
The island is named after Captain Johannes Fripp, a British sailor charged with protecting the Carolina crown colony from Spanish pirates. Once a private hunting range, a bridge built in 1961 connected Fripp with Hunting Island State Park , U.S. Highway 21, and nearby Beaufort and began to stimulate residential development. Within 10 years, the island had built a golf course, tennis courts, a marina, and a variety of homes and condominium units that would serve as the benchmark for development for the next thirty years. In 1994, the island underwent its final major development phase on its southern end, with development more or less completed by 2000. An additional golf course designed by Davis Love III was built, as well as a new community center and an expansion of the marina.
Fripp has a year-round population of 887 residents (2000 census), but in summer months the island's population can rise to about 2,000 to 3,000 visitors. It is not a municipality, though operates a security force, fire brigade, and has a property owners association. The Fripp Island Resort is the leading rental provider on the island, though it is possible to rent independently or through an off-island company. Often seen as an alternative, affordable, and less "touristy" destination compared with its large neighbor Hilton Head Island, Fripp has garnered national attention as a leading beach destination in South Carolina. It still remains relatively uncrowded in comparison to Hilton Head and commercial activity is heavily restricted.
Fripp has also been featured in several Hollywood films, including Forrest Gump, The Prince of Tides, and Disney's live-action The Jungle Book.
The island is a major loggerhead turtle hatchery and an active group of residents works to make the beaches safe for the laying turtles by observing ouside lighting precautions during nesting seasons and protecting nests from predation by humans, raccoons and other animals.
Author Pat Conroy is a part-time resident of the island. |
