| BEAUFORT COUNTY |
2/2/2010 |
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| Date
Formed: |
1769 |
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| Land Area (square miles): |
587 |
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| County Seat: |
Beaufort |
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| Other Cities and Towns: |
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| Bluffton, Hilton Head Island, Port Royal, Yemassee |
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| Form of Government: |
Council-Administrator |
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| Council Members: |
11 |
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| Method of Election |
Single Member |
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| Term Length |
4 years |
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| Council of Government: |
Lowcountry |
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| County History |
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| Both Beaufort County and its county seat were named for Henry
Somerset, Duke of Beaufort (1684-1714), one of the Lords Proprietors of
Carolina. The district was formed in 1769 from the parishes of Prince
William, St. Luke, St. Helena, and St. Peter. It remained relatively
unchanged in size until 1878, when a large portion was removed to form
Hampton County. French explorers visited this area long before the English
arrived. They established a fort in 1562, as did the Spanish in 1566; neither
of these settlements survived, however. Beaufort, the second oldest town in
South Carolina, was founded in 1710. In the years before the Civil War, rice
and sea island cotton plantations brought great wealth to the region. Federal
troops occupied Beaufort in December 1861, and the first school in the South
for freed slaves was established during the Civil War at what is now Penn
Center on St. Helena Island. Some famous residents of Beaufort County are
naturalists Alexander Garden (ca. 1730-1791) and Stephen Elliott (1771-1830);
Robert Smalls (1839-1915), a former slave who became a United States
Congressman; boxer Joe Frazier; and writer Pat Conroy. |
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| Population Trends |
Value |
Rank |
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Value |
Rank |
| Population
1980: |
65,364 |
15 |
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Numeric Change
1980-2000: |
55,573 |
5 |
| Population
1990: |
86,425 |
14 |
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Numeric Change 2000-2008: |
29,478 |
8 |
| Population
2000: |
120,937 |
12 |
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Avg. Ann.
Growth Rate 1980-2000: |
4.25% |
2 |
| Population Estimate 2007: |
146,722 |
11 |
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Avg. Ann.
Growth Rate 2000-2008: |
3.05% |
4 |
| Population Estimate 2008: |
150,415 |
11 |
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Percent Change 2006-2008: |
2.46% |
6 |
| Persons Per Square Mile 2008: |
256.2 |
7 |
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| Economic Data |
Value |
Rank |
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Value |
Rank |
| Jobs
1980: |
38,544 |
11 |
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Personal Income (PI) 2007: |
$6,665,211 |
8 |
| Jobs
1990: |
49,653 |
11 |
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Avg. Ann. Growth Rate (PI) 1969-2007: |
10.2% |
1 |
| Jobs
2000: |
71,160 |
7 |
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Per Capita Personal Income 2007: |
$45,427 |
1 |
| Jobs 2006: |
78,552 |
7 |
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% of U.S. PCPI 2007: |
118% |
1 |
| Jobs 2007: |
80,361 |
8 |
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Average Wage Per Job 2007: |
$34,530 |
13 |
| Numeric Change Jobs
2006-2007: |
1,809 |
8 |
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% of U.S. Avg.
Wage Per Job 2007: |
79% |
13 |
| Avg Ann Growth Rate Jobs
1980-2000: |
4.23% |
4 |
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Unemployment Rate 2007: |
5.3% |
44 |
| Avg Ann Growth Rate Jobs
2000-2007: |
1.85% |
8 |
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Avg. Unemployment
1998-2007: |
3.7% |
45 |
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| Tax Data |
Value |
Rank |
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Value |
Rank |
| Assessed Property 2007: |
$1,711,432,639 |
4 |
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Per Capita Assessed Property 2007: |
$14,151 |
1 |
| County Base Millage Rate
2009: |
0.04785 |
45 |
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Additional
Sales Tax (if applicable) |
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| Value of One Mil 2009: |
$1,638,808 |
4 |
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Local Option Sales Tax: |
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| Millage Cap FY10: |
6.4% |
6 |
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Capital Projects Sales Tax: |
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| Net Taxable Sales FY07: |
$2,570,227,342 |
7 |
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School District Sales Tax: |
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| Admissions Tax Collected
FY07: |
$3,497,835 |
4 |
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Transportation Sales Tax: |
1.0% |
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| Accommodations Tax Collected FY07: |
$5,518,471 |
3 |
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| Financial &
Employment Data |
Value |
Rank |
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Value |
Rank |
| Total Revenues FY08: |
$175,676,661 |
5 |
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Per Capita Revenues FY08: |
$1,453 |
2 |
| Total Expenditures FY08: |
$168,080,619 |
5 |
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Per Capita Expenditures FY08: |
$1,390 |
2 |
| General Fund Budget FY10: |
$106,000,000 |
5 |
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Per Capita General Fund Budget FY10: |
$876 |
2 |
| Total Debt Outstanding
FY08: |
$242,247,865 |
2 |
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Per Capita Debt Outstanding FY08: |
$1,656 |
1 |
| Payroll FY 2008: |
$53,000,000 |
5 |
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Credit Rating(s) FY08 |
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| Full-Time Employees FY10: |
1,196 |
7 |
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Moody's: |
Aa2 |
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| Part-Time Employees FY10: |
281 |
1 |
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Standard & Poor: |
AA+ |
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| Full Time Emp/1,000 Cnty
Residents: |
9.89 |
5 |
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Fitch: |
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updated |
2/2/2010 |
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