b'History of Beaufort CountyCOUNTY PROFILEDATE FORMED Beaufort County is located on the southern-most tip of South Carolina in the1769 area of the state referred to as the Lowcountry, and is bordered by Jasper, Hampton and Colleton counties. Both Beaufort County and its county seatLAND AREA were named for Henry Somerset, Duke of Beaufort (1684-1714), one of the587 square miles Lords and Proprietors of Carolina. The district was formed in 1769 from the parishes of Prince William, St. Luke, St. Helena, and St. Peter. It remainedMUNICIPALITIES relatively unchanged in size until 1878, when a large portion was removed toBluton form Hampton County. French explorers visited this area long before theHilton Head Island English arrived. They established a fort in 1562, as did the Spanish in 1566;Port RoyalYemassee neither of these settlements survived, however. FORM OF GOVERNMENT Centuries later, Beaufort was founded in 1710, making itthe second-oldestCouncil - Administrator town in South Carolina. In the years before the Civil War, rice and sea island cotton plantations brought great wealth to the region. Federal troops occupiedMETHOD OF ELECTION Beaufort in December 1861, and the rst school in the South for freed slavesSingle member and chairman was established during the Civil War at what is now Penn Center on St.elected annually by Council Helena Island. The military presence still remains today as Beaufort houses two major military installations, the U.S. Marine Corps Recruit Training Depoton Parris Island and the Marine Corps Air Station, as well as the BeaufortNaval Hospital.Beaufort County, SC | Budget Book 2024 Page 10'