thumb|A surviving home, pre-Hurricane Hugo (1989)

Pawleys Island is a town in Georgetown County, South Carolina, United States, and the Atlantic coast barrier island on which the town is located.

As of the 2020 census, Pawleys Island had a population of 130. The post office address also includes an unincorporated area on the mainland adjacent to the island, which is also commonly referred to as Pawleys Island and includes a commercial district along the Ocean Highway (US Route 17) as well as a residential area between the highway and the Waccamaw River. The town of Pawleys Island, though, is only on the island. The island lies off the Waccamaw Neck, a long, narrow peninsula between the ocean and the river, and is connected to the mainland by two bridges, the North Causeway and the South Causeway. It is on the southern end of The Grand Strand and is one of the oldest resort areas of the US East Coast.

History

The earliest known inhabitants of the Pawleys Island area were the Waccamaw and Winyah people, two Native American tribes whose history dates back more than 10,000 years. The ancient Waccamaw lived in communities along the Waccamaw River, an area stretching from Lake Waccamaw in North Carolina to Winyah Bay in Georgetown, South Carolina. Archaeological sites containing Waccamaw shell 'middens' (mounds) indicate that clams and oysters were popular foods. The Waccamaw were successful farmers, raising a variety of crops, and were skilled at domesticating animals including deer, chickens, ducks, geese, and other fowl. The Waccamaw tribe is a founding member of the South Carolina Indian Affairs Commission and has worked for decades with South Carolina governors to improve the lives and status of the state's first inhabitants. Town namesake George Pawley, who inherited the island through a land grant to his father, sold parcels to wealthy rice planters seeking a coastal summer refuge from malaria-causing mosquitoes.

In 1791, President George Washington toured the Grand Strand, traveling The King's Highway to an unincorporated portion of Pawleys Island to visit the Alstons, who owned several plantations in the area.

With Hurricane Hugo in 1989, some island cottages were swept away and have since been replaced. The island bans commercial or industrial buildings with the exception of a 1970s condominium complex and a few grandfathered inns, including the SeaView Inn and the PCJ Weston House, which is now the Pelican Inn.

thumb|Pawleys Island, South Carolina Town Hall

The town government was incorporated in 1985. The water temperature is comfortable from May to October, and there is abundant fishing, crabbing, shrimping, and birdwatching most months of the year.

All Saints Church, Cedar Grove Plantation Chapel, and Pawleys Island Historic District are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Geography

The Town of Pawleys Island is located just off U.S. Route 17, approximately east of Georgetown. The island itself, located at , is a little over long and about wide. To the east-southeast lies the Atlantic Ocean. The island is a sandy barrier, with some dunes on the northern end up to about high. The southern end is very low. Behind the island is a tidal creek/marsh.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and (29.29%) is water.

Demographics

thumb|Pawleys Island Post Office

As of the census

Education

Pawleys Island has a public library, a branch of the Georgetown County Library.

Notable people

The following people were born on Pawleys Island:

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  • Barry Preedom (1940–2025), physicist
  • Elizabeth Allston Pringle (1845–1921), plantation owner and writer

References

  • pawleysisland.com