Surfside Beach, South Carolina
Seal
Nickname: The Family Beach
Location in Horry County, South Carolina
Coordinates: 33°36′32″N 78°5′34″W / 33.60889, -78.09278
Country	United States
State	South Carolina
County	Horry
Government
- Mayor	Richard Riley, Jr
Area
- Total	2.0 sq mi (5.1 km²)
- Land	1.9 sq mi (5.0 km²)
- Water	0.0 sq mi (0.1 km²)
Elevation	10 ft (3 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	4,425
- Density	1,916.1/sq mi (739.8/km²)
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes	29575, 29587
Area code(s)	843
FIPS code	45-70585[1]
GNIS feature ID	1231847[2]
Website: www.surfsidebeach.org

Surfside Beach is a small seaside town in Horry County, South Carolina, United States situated directly south of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Its nickname is "The Family Beach". The population was 4,425 at the 2000 census. It is considered a part of the Grand Strand.

Geography

Surfside Beach is located at 33°36′32″N, 78°58′34″W (33.608813, -78.976117)^[3].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 2.0 square miles (5.1 km²), of which, 1.9 square miles (5.0 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (1.02%) is water.

History

Surfside Beach was first incorporated in 1964 with 881 residents. It was previously known as Roach's Beach and had only a few buildings surviving the hurricane of 1893. Principal industries were lumber and feed farming for the 30 or so horses and mules in the area. The new owner, Mr. George J. Holiday, renamed the area Floral Beach for his wife, Flora, and daughter, Floramay. In the late 1920's, a group from Columbia purchased and partially developed the land. In 1952, most of the land changed hands again and became known as Surfside Beach. The undeveloped beach area was covered with sand dunes; a one-lane sandy road led from the highway to a quiet, family beach.

Hurricane Hazel in 1954 destroyed 18 of the beach's 65 houses, but did not dampen the spirit of the developers. Lots were cleared, the sand was leveled, topsoil was brought in and T. J. Harrison, who later became the town's first mayor, opened the first grocery store in 1956 for the six permanent families and summer residents. Significant growth didn't happen until after 1956 when Myrtle Beach Air Force Base was reactivated. By 1964, its reputation as a family beach was further established and the town was becoming a popular place to retire. The new town government increased police protection, mosquito and sanitation control, and street lights and zoning ordinances resulted in increased property values. Public parking and walkways to the beach were established, and government offices were constructed. Within the next few years, the town continued to grow through annexation. Improvements were made to streets and water lines and business and residential building boomed. Surfside Beach, as well as the rest of the Grand Strand, became one of the fastest growing parts of the country.

Surfside Beach adopted a public-places smoking ban which took effect October 1, 2007. Surfside Beach is the first town in Horry County to enact such a ban, and one of only a handful in South Carolina.

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 4,425 persons, 2,150 households, and 1,234 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,287.6 people per square mile (885.2/km²). There were 3,698 housing units at an average density of 1,911.8/sq mi (739.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.75% White, 0.95% African American, 0.50% Native American, 0.36% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.50% from other races, and 0.93% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.42% of the population.

There were 2,150 households out of which 16.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couples living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.6% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.06 and the average family size was 2.55.

In the town the population was spread out with 13.6% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 29.7% from 45 to 64, and 19.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 98.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $40,612, and the median income for a family was $49,847. Males had a median income of $31,864 versus $24,966 for females. The per capita income for the town was $24,445. About 4.7% of families and 7.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.2% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.

Government

• The city is run by an elected Mayor-council government system.

Mayor

Roy Hyman Jr.

Term 05/11/04 – 05/13/08

Council Members

Rebecca J. Hiatt, Joseph P. Martin, William M. McKown, Douglas F. Samples, James S. Truett, Judith K. Tuttle

Transportation

Airports

• Myrtle Beach International Airport (MYR)
• Conway-Horry County Airport (HYW)

Mass Transit

• The Costal RTA ^[4] - Bus system operating seven days a week, 364 days a year. 15 routes throughout the Horry County/Grand Strand area, including Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Surfside Beach, Conway, Loris, and Aynor.

Major Roads and Highways

• U.S. 17 Bus.
• U.S. 17
• SC 544
• Glenns Bay Road
• Ocean Boulevard
• Surfside Drive
• Melody Lane
• Platt Drive
• Gibson Avenue
• Dogwood Drive
• Hollywood Drive
• Poplar Drive
• 10th Avenue South
• 16th Avenue North
• 5th Avenue North

Attractions

• Surfside Pier
• Two miles of white sand beach
• Restaurants
• Legends in Concert, a celebrity impersonator show theater
• Water Park
• Bowling
• River City Cafe

Tourism

Please help improve this article or section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (December 2007)

References

1. ^ ^{a b} American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
2. ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
3. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
4. ^ The Coast RTA

External links

• Surfside Beach, South Carolina is at coordinates 33°36′32″N 78°58′34″W / 33.608813, -78.976117 (Surfside Beach, South Carolina)Coordinates: 33°36′32″N 78°58′34″W / 33.608813, -78.976117 (Surfside Beach, South Carolina)

v â€¢ d â€¢ e Municipalities and communities of Horry County, South Carolina
County seat: Conway
Cities	Conway | Loris | Myrtle Beach | North Myrtle Beach
Towns	Atlantic Beach | Aynor | Briarcliffe Acres | Surfside Beach
CDPs	Bucksport | Forestbrook | Garden City | Little River | Red Hill | Socastee
Unincorporated communities	Bucksville | Burgess | Carolina Forest | Galivants Ferry | Homewood | Longs | Pine Island | Springmaid Beach