Historic Beaufort

The "Queen of the Carolina Sea Islands" is Beaufort, South Carolina. Beaufort SC history reaches back to the 1600's, when Barbadian planters, English indentured servants, and religious dissenters arrived to seek new lives.

The "Beaufort style" of architecture is a unique one, which incorporates elements of Georgian and Colonial styles, as well as those of Greek Revival and semitropical Spanish. Designed for airiness and coolness, the Beaufort-style homes resemble plantation homes brought to town (as some indeed were), that were adapted to tolerate the summer heat and dampness of the Lowcountry.

St. Helena's Episcopal Church, a famous Beaufort landmark was built in 1724 and surrounded by grounds which speak of the parish's 279 years of history. During the War Between the States, Federal troops dismantled the church to use it as a hospital, even uprooting graveyard slabs for operating tables. The John Mark Verdier House, built in 1801 in the Federal style, also survived occupation by Union forces. We offer bus tours of the low country so you can see Beaufort’s charms for yourself.