Hilton Head Island
covers four counties: Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper. Its past discloses
settlement and exploration, much war bloodshed, agricultural prosperity and
abundant plantations with fertile soils.
Hilton Head’s
native tribal ancestry encompasses the Edisto, Combahee, Yemassee and Daufuskie.
The Museum of Hilton Head Island withholds relics dated from 10,000 B.C. Coastal
Discovery when Paleo-Indians walked the land. From 8,000 to 2,000 BC, the
Woodland Indians seasonly migrated to Hilton Head Island. In 1663, an English
sea captain named William Hilton conquered the land for the British. Gloating of
the islands beauty, Hilton encouraged both colonization and prosperity. The
Lowcountry grew into plantation settlements. The search for new cash crops
began; Sea Island Long Staple Cotton, rice and indigo grew hearty during the
Golden Age.
Yet the Battle of
Port Royal transformed Hilton Head Island’s future. Zior Cemetery and Baynard
Mausoleum hold the bodies of the fallen Revolutionary War soldiers. In 1717,
Colonel John Barnwell became Hilton Head’s first white settler. Then in 1742,
under the command of Captain David Cutler Braddock, the Beaufort was stationed
to protect colonization efforts from Spaniards. The cove protected by the
Beaufort was named after Braddock.
During the slavery
years, a native language called Gullah—a mixture of slave, native, cadence and
Elizabethian English—developed. The Gullah culture, mostly old spirituals and
songs, has also been preserved. Community leaders continue the traditions
observed by the Gullians. When war efforts caused money shortages, the islanders
established a bartering system. After a few decades, Hilton Head emerged again
as a thriving vacation destination, whereby its full economic and cultural
development flourished. In 1951, Hilton Head Island received electricity. The
first bridge was fabricated during 1956. Also in the 50s, Charles Fraser
developed Hilton Head’s first resort community: Sea Pines.
Today, Braddock’s
Point Plantation House, Cotton Hope Plantation, and Rose Hill Plantation exist
as historical landmarks. Hilton Heads festivities include Food Fest, Hilton Head
Island St. Patrick’s Day Parade, MCI Heritage, the Native Islander Gullah
Celebration, Springfest, Winefest and Winter Carnival.
