Hilton Head Island has water on all four sides and a different body of it on each. The Atlantic runs along the southeast shore, Port Royal Sound closes the northeast, Calibogue Sound the southwest, and Skull Creek carries the Intracoastal Waterway past the north end. US 278 comes over Mackay Creek and Skull Creek from the mainland, and it meets I-95 at Exit 8 in Hardeeville.
The island became a town in 1983, long after Captain William Hilton put his name on the headland in 1663 and longer still after people were first living here, and it keeps the centuries in between in plain view. Historic Mitchelville Freedom Park at 40 Harriet Tubman Way marks one of the first self-governing towns of formerly enslaved people in the country, with a trail and an observation deck over the marsh. Fort Howell, the earthwork built to protect Mitchelville, is a public park now and went on the National Register in 2011.
Much of what draws people here is arranged for visitors and open to them. Coligny Beach Park at 1 Coligny Circle is the public way onto the sand, the Coastal Discovery Museum keeps gardens and boardwalks at Honey Horn on 70 Honey Horn Drive, and the Harbour Town Lighthouse, finished in 1970, can be climbed for the view over Calibogue Sound.
Several more of the island’s historic sites carry National Register listings without being set up for visitors. Fort Mitchel, the Fish Haul archaeological site, Cherry Hill School, the Stoney-Baynard ruins and the rear lighthouse of the Hilton Head Range Light Station are all on the list.
The Census counted 37,661 residents in 2020 against 29,018 housing units, and 9,800 of those homes were held for seasonal, recreational or occasional use, about a third of every house and condominium here. Only 17,329 were occupied as somebody’s usual residence. The population has held close to level, with the July 2025 estimate at 38,196, about 1.4 percent above the count.
That mix shapes what we handle. Townhouses, condominiums and fractional or shared-ownership interests make up much of it, and the employment follows the same pattern. The town’s FY2022 report put SERG Group Restaurants at 1,110 employees, Sea Pines Resort at 679, Marriott Vacation Club International at 549, Coastal Restaurants and Bars at 500, Beaufort County School District at 490 and Hilton Head Medical Center and Clinics at 453. Beaufort County School District serves the island, and Hilton Head Island Airport is on the island itself at 120 Beach City Road, owned and run by Beaufort County.
Sourced: incorporation 1983 and the 1663 date, Town of Hilton Head Island. Population and housing units, U.S. Census Bureau 2020 count and Vintage 2025 estimate. Park addresses and descriptions, Town of Hilton Head Island. Register listings, National Park Service. Employers, the Town’s FY2022 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, Schedule 18, which is 2022 data rather than current headcount. Airport ownership and location, Beaufort County airport master plan. Seasonal use, 2020 Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics file, table H5, vacancy status. Occupied housing, the same file, table H3, occupancy status. Housing character, our own listing and sales records.