Garden City, sometimes known as Garden City Beach, is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) in

Horry County, South Carolina Horry County ( ) is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 351,029. It is the fourth-most populous county in South Carolina. The county seat is Conway. Horry County is the centra ...

, United States. The population was 9,209 at the 2010 census. Garden City Beach is located directly south of Surfside Beach. The developed part of the beach extends south beyond the limits of the Garden City CDP, into Georgetown County, and ends on a peninsula at the mouth of Murrells Inlet.

Geography

Garden City is located in southern Horry County at (33.587760, -79.005221). It is bordered to the northeast by the town of Surfside Beach, to the northwest by

U.S. Route 17 U.S. Route 17 or U.S. Highway 17 (US 17), also known as the Coastal Highway, is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that spans in the Southeastern United States. It runs close to the East Coast of the United States, At ...

, to the south by the Georgetown County/Horry County line, and to the southeast by the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

. U.S. Route 17 Business is the main road through the center of the community, leading northeast to the center of

Myrtle Beach Myrtle Beach is a resort city on the East Coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is located in the center of a long and continuous stretch of beach known as the " Grand Strand” in the northeastern part of the state. It ...

. Georgetown is to the southwest via US 17. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the Garden City CDP has a total area of , of which are land and , or 1.47%, are water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 10,235 people, 4,893 households, and 2,765 families residing in the CDP.

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 9,357 people, 4,703 households, and 2,873 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 7,995 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 97.02%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 1.00%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.28% Native American, 0.42% Asian, 0.10%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.30% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.12% of the population. There were 4,703 households, out of which 12.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.9% were non-families. 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.96 and the average family size was 2.40. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 11.2% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 21.5% from 25 to 44, 27.6% from 45 to 64, and 34.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 54 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.1 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $34,967, and the median income for a family was $40,403. Males had a median income of $27,683 versus $22,904 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the CDP was $24,062. About 2.9% of families and 5.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 7.4% of those under age 18 and 3.5% of those age 65 or over.

Attractions

The Pier at Garden City

Formally known as the Kingfisher Pier that was completely destroyed by

Hurricane Hugo Hurricane Hugo was a powerful tropical cyclone that inflicted widespread destruction across the northeastern Caribbean and the Southeastern United States in September 1989. The eleventh tropical cyclone, eighth Tropical cyclone naming, named st ...

and replaced, It is approximately long, with a rain shelter at the end of the pier which includes a bar and nightly live music during the tourist season.

Garden City Golf Cart Parade

The Garden City Golf Cart Parade is a

Fourth of July Independence Day, known colloquially as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States which commemorates the ratification of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing th ...

parade that features red, white and blue-decorated

golf cart A golf cart (alternatively known as a golf buggy or golf car) is a small motorized vehicle designed originally to carry two golfers and their golf clubs around a golf course with less effort than walking. Over time, variants were introduced t ...

s. It has been a community tradition for almost 30 years. It originally started at Calhoun Drive behind Willards Fireworks. After a brief hiatus, it was held again on July 4, 2009.

Weather

Temperatures tend to be in the 80s (°F) during the summer months in Garden City, SC, and in the 40s during the winter. The warmest month of the year is July with an average maximum temperature of , while the coldest month of the year is January with an average minimum temperature of . The annual average precipitation at Garden City is 54.57 inches. Rainfall is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year. The wettest month of the year is September with an average rainfall of 6.44 inches.

Hurricane Hazel

The worst disaster in the community's history occurred on 14 October 1954.

Hurricane Hazel Hurricane Hazel was the deadliest, second-costliest, and most intense hurricane of the 1954 Atlantic hurricane season. The storm killed at least 469 people in Haiti before it struck the United States near the border between North and Sou ...

slammed into the community and left only two houses habitable.

Hurricane Hugo

In September 1989,

destroyed 43% of the beachfront structures along the coast in Garden City. In the aftermath of the storm, Horry County administrator M. L. Love said, "Garden City for all practical purposes is gone." The Kingfisher Pier, as it was known at that time, was also destroyed by Hurricane Hugo. Reconstruction of the pier began in February 1992. The Pier at Garden City, as it is known today, was fully operational July 1992, and no significant damage has been reported since then.

Transportation

Roads and highways

* U.S. 17 Business *

U.S. 17 U.S. Route 17 or U.S. Highway 17 (US 17), also known as the Coastal Highway, is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that spans in the Southeastern United States. It runs close to the East Coast of the United States, At ...

Mass transit

* The Coast RTA - 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, Garden City, Conway, Loris, and Aynor.

References

External links

The Pier at Garden City

Memories of Maze Mania
{{authority control Census-designated places in Horry County, South Carolina Census-designated places in South Carolina Populated coastal places in South Carolina