Beaufort (South Carolina)



Beaufort is a coastal town in the Low Country of South Carolina.

Understand
Beaufort is located on Port Royal Island, in the heart of the Low Country of South Carolina. The city is renowned for its scenic location and for maintaining a historic character by preservation of its antebellum architecture. The city is also known for its military establishments, being close to the U.S. Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island and a U.S. naval hospital, in addition to being home of the Marine Corps Air Station (Beaufort).

European contact with the Beaufort area traces back to 1514 when Spanish Captain Diego Guilarte de Salazar arrived, becoming the 2nd landing of Europeans in North America. Further, Beaufort was founded in 1711 and thereby lays claim to being the 2nd oldest city in South Carolina, behind Charleston. Much of its architecture from days gone by, like over 70 structures, is preserved on the National Register of Historic Places. During the Civil War, it was captured fairly early by Union forces and, a bit ironically, became a refuge for escaped slaves, after serving so long as a center for slave trade and place of profit for Lowcountry planters.

The city has been featured in the New York Times, and named "Best Small Southern Town" by Southern Living, a "Top 25 Small City Arts Destination" by American Style, and a "Top 50 Adventure Town" by National Geographic Adventure.

Most scenes of the 1994 film Forrest Gump were shot around Beaufort.

By plane
The closest airport to Beaufort is the Hilton Head Airport, which is south of Beaufort (keep in mind you can't go direct). However, the service is sparse. The Savannah-Hilton Head International Airport is  southwest of Beaufort. It has commercial service to all of the major U.S. airline hubs. Charleston International Airport is  northeast of Beaufort. It has more commercial service than Savannah and Hilton Head.

By road
Interstate 95 passes right north of Beaufort. Beaufort can easily be accessed via the exits for U.S. Route 278 and U.S. Route 17 on I-95.

By train
The Yemassee Amtrak station is served twice a day-once by the nighttime Silver Meteor, which goes down to Miami and up to New York City, and once by the daytime Palmetto, which goes on the same basic route as the Silver Meteor, except it ends at Savannah.

See
Historic Beaufort Foundation (HBF) has worked hard to preserve the fabulous architecture you will see, and offers lectures and events throughout the year.