Plantations of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina (maple frame)

A Map of the Plantations of Hilton Head Island. 

Historic plantations of 1861 are shown as dashed lines and

script letter.  Modern plantations of 2015 are shown as

colored areas and block letters.

2015, 19” wide by 13” tall, watercolor on cotton rag

Hilton Head Island is well known to people throughout the United States

and beyond.  Much of this recognition is as a result of 20th century

development of world class golf courses and its beautiful beaches – a

recipe for great summer vacations.  But the island has a much longer

history, especially during the pre-Civil War era.  Many plantations were

developed on the island for production of Sea Island cotton, a highly

valued long staple cotton variety.

This map helps describe how Hilton Head Island has changed from

the eve of the Civil War to today.  We have used several cartographic

techniques to simultaneously describe the modern layout of the island

and what would have been there over 150 years ago.  We hope this map

helps lovers of Hilton Head to have a greater appreciation of how the

island has changed over generations.