Musings
The Dawn of Summer
Mar
The fortunate folks who call Hilton Head Island home know that, once we’ve made it to March, then what we laughingly call winter, in our subtropical paradise, is done. Golf jackets start to stay in the bag. Walks and bike rides along our scenic trails grow longer. Picnics and patio parties appear. If April’s RBC Heritage Golf Classic is the celebration of our summer’s arrival, then March is the dawn.
The Harbour Town Lighthouse is more famous for our sunsets. The fabulous colors at the close of a day on America’s favorite vacation island are enough to inspire memories that last a lifetime. When it comes to the dawn of a whole season here, well we find cause for celebration in this, too. And even for folks who don’t live here, the experience is near enough for many to enjoy whenever the idea takes hold.
Near Enough to Know
One of the striking things we see when hosting visitors here at the Harbour Town Lighthouse is the blend of far and near. Yes, it’s true that people come to the lighthouse from all over the world. Yet, on the very same day that we meet someone from Paris, we might also be welcoming a family from Atlanta, Charlotte, or Jacksonville. Clearly, one reason Hilton Head Island became America’s favorite vacation island is because a lot of people can get here pretty easily.
And yet, like many landmarks, we run the risk of being overlooked by the people nearest to us. Just as New Yorkers rarely go to the Statue of Liberty until someone comes to visit, Hilton Head Islanders sometimes forget to refresh their sense of inspiration and gratitude by coming back to the Harbour Town Lighthouse for another look.
Everybody Moved Closer
It’s not much of an exaggeration, especially east of the Mississippi, to say that since Hilton Head Island became a vacation destination, Americans just moved closer. A leading factor in the “sunbelt” migration of the late 20th century, people increasingly found careers that weren’t tied to a factory. As the Baby Boomers reached retirement, their choice in millions of cases was to move to a kinder climate – and that meant south. And with the digital age, more people no longer have to go to an office every day.
The net result is that millions more Americans are within an easy drive of the Harbour Town Lighthouse today than when we were completed in 1969.
How We Kept it Beautiful
The American Southeast became a magnet for migration during the years of Hilton Head Island’s remarkable entrance on the scene. Surely, there is a chicken-or-the-egg factor in this relationship, because while millions of families came to visit, tens of thousands decided to stay. Yet, remarkable as the growth of Hilton Head Island became, it was never out of control, thanks to two key factors.
First, we set aside large portions of our precious island to remain unspoiled. Sea Pines Founder Charles Fraser began in 1970 with 600 acres, designated the Sea Pines Forest Preserve. This practice was continued throughout the island by thoughtful civic officials who designated several spots as nature sanctuaries.
Second, the precedents set here in Sea Pines of blending the resort with nature became so influential that the rest of the island followed much of the Sea Pines example. In fact, the whole industry of resort development so thoroughly adopted this approach that it takes a historian – or someone who was there at the time, of whom we at the lighthouse are blessed to know a handful – to recall just how original the idea was in the beginning.
A Welcome Reminder
Now that so many are so near, we wanted to offer this reminder to take advantage of a true treasure. Whether we are at your doorstep, or a day’s drive away, your welcome at the Harbour Town Lighthouse will be ready, and as fresh as ever.
