North Myrtle Beach is a city in Horry County, South Carolina, United States. It was created in 1968 from four existing municipalities, and is located about northeast 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 ...

. It serves as one of the primary tourist destinations along the Grand Strand. As of the 2020 census, the population was 18,790. It is part of the Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a combined population of 449,295 as of 2016.

History

In 1737, William Gause obtained a grant to of land near Windy Hill Beach. He farmed the area and also established a tavern for travelers along the Kings Highway. North Myrtle Beach was created in 1968 with the consolidation of Cherry Grove Beach, Crescent Beach, Ocean Drive Beach, and Windy Hill Beach.

Geography

North Myrtle Beach is located in eastern Horry County. It is bordered to the southwest by Briarcliffe Acres and to the northeast by Little River. Via US 17, it is northeast of

and southwest of Wilmington. Via SC 9 it is southeast of

I-95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

near Dillon. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which are land and , or 3.39%, are water. The area is divided into four separate areas based on its former municipalities. These are Windy Hill, Crescent Beach, Ocean Drive, and Cherry Grove, a spit bordering

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. Atlantic Beach, which is bordered on three sides by North Myrtle Beach, chose to remain its own town during the merger.

Neighborhoods

Barefoot Being barefoot is the state of not wearing any footwear. There are health benefits and some risks associated with going barefoot. Shoes, while they offer protection, can limit the flexibility, strength, and mobility of the foot and can lead ...

* Bell's Lake * Cherry Grove Beach * Crescent Beach * Ingram Beach * Little River Neck * Ocean Creek * Ocean Drive Beach * Park Pointe * Seabrook Plantation * Tidewater * Windy Hill Beach

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 18,790 people, 7,558 households, and 4,583 families residing in the city.

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 10,974 people, 5,406 households, and 3,130 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 18,091 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.50%

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 ...

, 2.31%

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 ...

, 0.47% Native American, 0.64% Asian, 0.14%

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 ...

, 1.06% 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 2.36% of the population. There were 5,406 households, out of which 15.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.5% 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 42.1% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.03 and the average family size was 2.53. In the city, the population distribution by age was 13.8% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 25.9% from 25 to 44, 32.8% from 45 to 64, and 21.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.2 males. The median income for a household in the city was $38,787, and the median income for a family was $46,052. Males had a median income of $30,189 versus $22,119 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 city was $27,006. About 5.1% of families and 8.5% 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 12.8% of those under age 18 and 4.8% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

North Myrtle Beach has a public library, a branch of the Horry County Memorial Library.

Government

North Myrtle Beach adheres to the Council-Manager form of government. The current mayor is Marilyn Hatley. The current council members are J.O. Baldwin (Mayor ''

pro tempore ''Pro tempore'' (), abbreviated ''pro tem'' or ''p.t.'', is a Latin phrase which best translates to 'for the time being' in English. This phrase is often used to describe a person who acts as a '' locum tenens'' ('placeholder'). The phrase is ...

''), Bubba Collins, Trey Skidmore, Nikki Fontana, Hank Thomas, and Fred Coyne. The current acting City Manager is Ryan Fabbri. The former city manager, Mike Mahaney resigned on October 22, 2024

Education

* Ocean Drive Elementary School * Riverside Elementary School * Waterway Elementary School * North Myrtle Beach Middle School * North Myrtle Beach High School (in nearby Little River)

Infrastructure

Transportation

Road

* * * * * * Robert Edge Parkway

Air

North Myrtle Beach is home to a single terminal, the Grand Strand Airport, serving primarily banner planes and small aircraft. The airfield is located in the heart of the city. The airport generates over $10.1 million in local economic output.

Bus

North Myrtle Beach is served by the Coast RTA, formerly Waccamaw RTA or Lymo.

Notable people

* Alyssa Arce, fashion model, ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...

'' Playmate for July 2013 * Ryan Quigley - football punter who has played for the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

, and

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

. * Lou Saban, former football coach; lived here until his death * Kelly Tilghman, Golf Channel broadcaster and

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also known as the PGA Tour, the PGA Tour Champion ...

's first female lead golf announcer * Sadler Vaden, musician, best known as a member of

Jason Isbell Michael Jason Isbell ( ; born February 1, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. One of the most celebrated contemporary songwriters in his genre, his lyrics are defined by their raw emotional honesty. Isbell began his career as a me ...

's band, The 400 Unit. * Vanna White, television personality known for co-hosting ''Wheel of Fortune''

References

External links

City of North Myrtle Beach official website
* {{authority control Cities in South Carolina Myrtle Beach metropolitan area Cities in Horry County, South Carolina Populated coastal places in South Carolina