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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:

  • That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
  • We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
  • On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.

By learning about Hilton Head Island (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.

As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Hilton Head Island. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Name Variations for Hilton Head Island ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Hilton Head Island: Hilton Head Is. (in Canada, 'Isld.' is the more common abbreviation.)

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the west contained birth and death records; the county to the south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Hilton Head Island is located in Beaufort County.

To see how the shape of South Carolina's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Beaufort County: Colleton, Hampton & Jasper.

Below are the counties that are near Hilton Head Island. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Hilton Head Island:

  • Beaufort County     (The home county of Hilton Head Island)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hilton Head Island, with the one closest to Hilton Head Island listed first.
    • Point Comfort
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Comfort
      • Point Comfort is located in Beaufort County
    • Harbour Town
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harbour Town have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harbour Town
      • Harbour Town is located in Beaufort County
    • Bluffton
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Daufuskie Island
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Battery Marina Village
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Battery Marina Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Battery Marina Village
      • Battery Marina Village is located in Beaufort County
    • Port Royal
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Shell Point
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shell Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shell Point
      • Shell Point is located in Beaufort County
    • Okatie
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Pritchardville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pritchardville
      • Pritchardville is located in Beaufort County
    • Sangster Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sangster Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sangster Village
      • Sangster Village is located in Beaufort County
    • Beaufort
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Burton
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Polk Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Polk Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polk Village
      • Polk Village is located in Beaufort County
  • Colleton County
    • Edisto Beach
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Edisto Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edisto Beach
      • Edisto Beach is located in Colleton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 402 people
  • Jasper County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hilton Head Island, with the one closest to Hilton Head Island listed first.
    • Ridgeland
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Tillman
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Chatham County (GA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hilton Head Island, with the one closest to Hilton Head Island listed first.
    • Fort Screven
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Screven
      • Fort Screven is located in Chatham County (GA)
    • Tybee Island
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tybee Island have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tybee Island
      • Tybee Island is located in Chatham County (GA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,051 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tybee Island <2>
    • Golden Isles
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Whitemarsh Island
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whitemarsh Island have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitemarsh Island
      • Whitemarsh Island is located in Chatham County (GA)
    • Wilmington Island
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wilmington Island have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmington Island
      • Wilmington Island is located in Chatham County (GA)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wilmington Island <2>
    • Isle of Armstrong
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Isle of Armstrong have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isle of Armstrong
      • Isle of Armstrong is located in Chatham County (GA)
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 2,402 people
    • Robert M Hitch Village
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Robert M Hitch Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robert M Hitch Village
      • Robert M Hitch Village is located in Chatham County (GA)
    • Savannah
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Savannah
      • Savannah is located in Chatham County (GA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 143,632 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Savannah <2>
    • Thunderbolt
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Thunderbolt have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thunderbolt
      • Thunderbolt is located in Chatham County (GA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,601 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Thunderbolt <2>
    • Carver Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carver Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carver Village
      • Carver Village is located in Chatham County (GA)
    • Isle of Hope
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Isle of Hope have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isle of Hope
      • Isle of Hope is located in Chatham County (GA)
    • Abercorn Heights
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abercorn Heights
      • Abercorn Heights is located in Chatham County (GA)
    • Alabama Junction
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alabama Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alabama Junction
      • Alabama Junction is located in Chatham County (GA)
  • Effingham County (GA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hilton Head Island, with the one closest to Hilton Head Island listed first.
    • Exley
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Exley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exley
      • Exley is located in Effingham County (GA)
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 2,894 people
    • Rincon
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rincon have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rincon
      • Rincon is located in Effingham County (GA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,655 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rincon <2>

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Hilton Head Island, see our County-by-County Page for Hilton Head Island.

Newspapers Published in Hilton Head Island ...

An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).

To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.

Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 23 newspapers that have been published in the area around Hilton Head Island.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Hilton Head Island, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Hilton Head Island.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Hilton Head Island:

Cemeteries Near Hilton Head Island ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Hilton Head Island.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Hilton Head Island covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Hilton Head Island, with the one closest to Hilton Head Island listed first.

  • Stoney Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Stoney Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Stoney Cemetery
  • Jenkins Island Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jenkins Island Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jenkins Island Cemetery
  • Talbor Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Talbor Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Talbor Cemetery
  • Pope Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pope Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pope Cemetery
  • Baynard Tomb
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Baynard Tomb have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Baynard Tomb
  • Government Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Government Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Government Cemetery
  • Opossum Point Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Opossum Point Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Opossum Point Cemetery
  • Drayton Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Drayton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Drayton Cemetery
  • Elliot Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Elliot Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Elliot Cemetery
  • Lawton Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lawton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lawton Cemetery
  • Six Oaks Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Six Oaks Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Six Oaks Cemetery
  • Haig Point Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Haig Point Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Haig Point Cemetery
  • Continue List   (105 more) ...
    • Braddocks Point Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Braddocks Point Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Braddocks Point Cemetery
    • Bluffton Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bluffton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bluffton Cemetery
    • Moreland Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Moreland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Moreland Cemetery

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Hilton Head Island had a population of 108 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Hilton Head Island had a population of 39,619 people.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Hilton Head Island, with the one closest to Hilton Head Island listed first.

  • Bluffton
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Port Royal
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Okatie
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Pritchardville
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pritchardville
    • Pritchardville is located in Beaufort County
  • Tybee Island
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tybee Island have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tybee Island
    • Tybee Island is located in Chatham County (GA)
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,051 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tybee Island <2>
  • Frogmore
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frogmore have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frogmore
    • Frogmore is located in Beaufort County
  • Beaufort
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
  • Hardeeville
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
  • Savannah
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Savannah
    • Savannah is located in Chatham County (GA)
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 143,632 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Savannah <2>
  • Coosaw
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coosaw have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coosaw
    • Coosaw is located in Beaufort County
  • Dale
    (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
  • Ridgeland
    (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (10 more) ...
    • Isle of Hope
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Isle of Hope have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isle of Hope
      • Isle of Hope is located in Chatham County (GA)
    • Wheat Hill
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wheat Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheat Hill
      • Wheat Hill is located in Chatham County (GA)
    • Central Junction
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Central Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central Junction
      • Central Junction is located in Chatham County (GA)

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Hilton Head Island. See our List of 1890's Communities around Hilton Head Island.

The official website for Hilton Head Island: www.hiltonheadislandsc.gov/

The official website for Beaufort County: www.co.beaufort.sc.us/

The official website for State of South Carolina: https://sc.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Hilton Head Island) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Hilton Head Island. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 32.2162, Longitude: -80.7379    
<4>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Hilton Head Island, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024