Sea Pines Plantation

Mounds of shells tell us that native americans have lived on this island for 1000s of years, but the modern history begins in 1663 when the island was named for Captain Hilton who brought european exploration to this part of the coast.  Hilton Head is the largest barrier island on the Eastern Seaboard.  Throughout history it was home to the Sea Island  Cotton Trade, and a Confederate stronghold.  Settled after the civil war by native islanders, mostly freed slaves and then developed over the next century as a resort settlement, today Hilton Head Island is an active destination with an eco-friendly reputation - part gated community but with large public beaches and mindful attention to maintaining treecover.

The Sea Pines Plantation itself is relatively new - conceived in the 1960s and developed in the 1980s as a golf destination and host for the Heritage Classic.  Like the rest of the island, Sea Pines is an intentionally planned community with ecological intentions and attention to detail.  Charles Fraser, inventor of the modern American resort, and his team captured an endogenous "Sea Pines Style" influenced by 1960s modern architecture (California/Japanese), Frank Lloyd Wright's Auldbrass Plantation, and most of all the vernacular of the surrounding community - a Lowcountry aesthetic evoked by large overhangs, screened porches, low roof slopes, earth toned colours and a progressive use of native plants long before they were popular in the mainstream.

South Beach Marina

Sea Pines Beach Club

Heritage Farm CSA Garden

Harbor Town

Schooner Beach