A Brief History of Beaufort SC

Three centuries in the making, Beaufort is the leading gem on South Carolina’s treasured coast. With an active and engaged community, a National Landmark Historic District, a strong military presence, a vital tourism market and some of the best fishing anywhere, Beaufort has a way of reeling you in …
When the Spanish first visited Beaufort in 1514 – just one year after the first landing on the North American continent by Europeans at St. Augustine – they found Native Americans enjoying the pristine waters and deep forests.
French explorers visited the Beaufort area in 1562 when Captain Jean Ribaut and his Frenchmen entered the sound which he named Port Royal – one of the deepest natural harbors on the Atlantic Coast. These Huguenots formed the first Protestant settlement in the United States.

A century later, the English stepped into development plans for the Beaufort area when, on March 24, 1663, King Charles II granted the Coastal Area to eight ‘Lord Proprietors.’ They named their territory “Carolina” in honor of King Charles I.
Beaufort, the second oldest town in South Carolina, was founded in 1711. Beaufort was named for Henry Somerset, Duke of Beaufort (1684-1714), one of the Lords Proprietors of Carolina.
Beaufort was a colonial gem with wealthy planters and merchants. Nearby is Penn Center, the first school for freed black slaves established by Unitarians from Pennsylvania even as the Civil War waged on. In the 1980s, Beaufort saw its tourist fortunes rise with the filming of several major Hollywood films here, including “The Big Chill,” “Forrest Gump,” and “Prince of Tides” – the latter written by Pat Conroy, who calls this area his home.
Beaufort’s been named a “Best Small Southern Town” by Southern Living, “Top 25 Small City Arts Destination” by American Style, a “Top 20 Fishing Town” by Field and Stream, a “Top 50 Adventure Town” by National Geographic Adventure and a “Top 200 Outdoors Town” by Outdoor Life magazine.
A careful note of local importance that sets apart the Carolinas: In Beaufort, South Carolina, the name is pronounced BYEW-ford. In North Carolina, a coastal town of great similarity with the same spelling is pronounced BO-fort.
For information about Beaufort’s celebration of its 300th birthday and the city’s extensive history, visit http://www.beaufortthreecentury.org/.