Back مقاطعة بوفورت (كارولينا الجنوبية) Arabic Beaufort County, South Carolina BAR Бюфърт (окръг, Южна Каролина) Bulgarian বিউফোর্ট কাউন্টি, সাউথ ক্যারোলাইনা BPY Beaufort Gông (South Carolina) CDO Бьюфорт (гуо, Къилба Каролина) CE Beaufort County (kondado sa Tinipong Bansa, South Carolina) CEB Beaufort County, De Carolina CY Beaufort County (South Carolina) German Kantono Beaufort (Suda Karolino) EO

Beaufort County, South Carolina

For the city, see Beaufort, South Carolina.
Not to be confused with Beaufort County, North Carolina.

Beaufort County
County
The Arsenal in Beaufort Historic District
The Arsenal in Beaufort Historic District
Flag of Beaufort County
Flag
Official seal of Beaufort County
Seal
Motto: 
"Heritage By The Sea"
Map of South Carolina highlighting Beaufort County
Location within the U.S. state of South Carolina
Map of the United States highlighting South Carolina
South Carolina's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 32°22′N 80°41′W / 32.36°N 80.69°W / 32.36; -80.69
Country United States
State South Carolina
Founded1800
Named forHenry Somerset, 2nd Duke of Beaufort
SeatBeaufort
Largest communityHilton Head Island
Area
 • Total923.48 sq mi (2,391.8 km2)
 • Land576.04 sq mi (1,491.9 km2)
 • Water347.44 sq mi (899.9 km2)  37.62%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total187,117
 • Estimate 
(2023)
198,979
 • Density324.83/sq mi (125.42/km2)
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district1st
Websitewww.beaufortcountysc.gov

Beaufort County (/ˈbjuːfərt/ BEW-fərt) is a county in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 187,117.[1] Its county seat is Beaufort and its largest community is Hilton Head Island.[2]

Beaufort County is part of the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is one of the South's fastest-growing counties, primarily because of development south of the Broad River clustered along the U.S. Highway 278 corridor.[3] The county's northern portions have also grown steadily, due in part to the strong federal military presence around the city of Beaufort. The county's two portions are connected by the Broad River Bridge, which carries South Carolina Highway 170. Beaufort County has been identified as the most at-risk county in the contiguous United States for combined damage from climate change in the medium term, largely due to high wet-bulb temperatures, economic and farm crop damages, and sea level rise.[4]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference 2020CensusQuickFacts was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ^ "U.S. County Population Estimates, 2015". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
  4. ^ "New Climate Maps Show a Transformed United States". ProPublica. September 15, 2020. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2021.