2008 Hot Retirement Towns

Pawleys Island, South Carolina
VIBRANT MYRTLE BEACH the island, though thousands more Georgetown County were the Wac-
boasts of its bright lights, wide enjoy the beach, ﬁshing, crabbing, camaw and Winyah Indians, who
beaches and wider range of enter- shrimping and bird watching dur- called the area Chicora, which means
tainment, shopping and dining ing the summer months. According “the land.” Spanish explorers prob-
opportunities. Historic Georgetown, to local lore, among the full-time ably visited the area in 1526 but did
once an important port city, bills residents of Pawleys Island is the not establish a permanent settlement.
itself as a key player in the story of Gray Man, a mostly friendly appari- English planters and their African
the United States. tion whose most important job is slaves arrived in the early 18th cen-
About halfway in between along warning residents of approaching tury and made their mark by building
the Atlantic coast is the laid-back town hurricanes. Legend has it that the thriving rice and indigo plantations.
of Pawleys Island, whose residents homes of those who see the Gray Pawleys Island, named for early
would just as soon eschew the notori- Man survive storms unscathed. settler George Pawley, served as a
ety that often accompanies present-day Connected to the mainland by refuge from the mosquitoes that
popularity and historic signiﬁcance. two bridges, the North Causeway were plentiful and, once malaria was
Pawleys Island, located in George- and the South Causeway, Paw- introduced in the Colonies, danger-
town County, is a little more than leys Island was incorporated in ous during the summer months.
three miles long and a quarter-of- September 1985 but is virtually Through the years, Pawleys Island
a-mile wide. Though it is within without commercial buildings, has retained its relaxed atmosphere
easy driving distance of an array of other than a town hall/sheriﬀ’s of- and laid-back attitude despite its
world-class golf courses, the excite- ﬁce, a chapel and two inns. Among proximity to the fast-growing, fast-
ment of the Grand Strand and the the oldest residences on the island moving and ever-developing Grand
history-laden cities of Georgetown are Beachaven, on the north side, Strand of coastal Carolina. That’s the
and Charleston, it serves as a peaceful owned by William Brigham Sr., and way its residents like it, describing
refuge for its residents and visitors. the Pelican Inn. their community with pride as “ar-
Fewer than 200 people live on The earliest inhabitants of rogantly shabby.”
At A Glance
Pawleys Island, SC
Population: 138
Average Temp: 75 F
Average Age: 54
Nearest Hospital:
Georgetown Memorial Hospital
Nearest Major Airport:
Myrtle Beach
International Airport
Pawleys Island Info:
www.TownOfPawleysIsland.com
photo by Barbara Patrick
www.RetiringToSouthCarolina.com I www.HotRetirementTowns.com I www.CoastalRetirementTowns.com
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