Conway, South Carolina

History

Conway is one of the oldest towns in South Carolina. Originally early English colonists named the village as named "Kings Town" but soon changed it to "Kingston". The town was founded in 1732 as part of Royal Governor Robert Johnson's Township Scheme. It was laid out on a bluff overlooking the Waccamaw River in what is now known as Horry County.

Many area residents fought in the American Revolution, and small engagements were fought near Kingston at Bear Bluff and at Black Lake. Francis Marion, who was known as the "Swamp Fox", had an encampment near Kingston just across the Waccamaw River.

After the war, patriotic citizens wanted to discard the name that honored Great Britain's King George II. The County's name was changed to Horry (pronounced oh-ree) in honor of General Peter Horry in 1801, and a courthouse was established in Kingston. "Kingston" was later changed to "Conwayborough", for General Robert Conway. In 1883, the General Assembly changed the name to the current name of Conway.

Geography

Conway, the county seat of Horry County, is situated in the South Carolina Coastal Plain, on the western banks of the Waccamaw River, and is approximately 25 km from the Atlantic Ocean.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 13.4 square miles (35 km²), of which 12.7 square miles (33 km²) is land and 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²) 5.08% is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 11,788 people, 4,259 households, and 2,942 families residing in the city. The population density was 927.8 people per square mile (358.1/km²). There were 4,783 housing units at an average density of 376.5 per square mile (145.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 55.82% White, 41.85% African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.74% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.64% from other races, and 0.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.87% of the population.

There were 4,259 households out of which 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.3% were married couples living together, 23.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.9% were non-families. 26.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the city, the population was spread out with 25.1% under the age of 18, 15.8% from 18 to 24, 25.3% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 13.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 83.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $32,155, and the median income for a family was $39,189. Males had a median income of $26,720 versus $21,310 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,611. About 15.9% of families and 20.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.9% of those under age 18 and 16.0% of those age 65 or over.

Government

The city is run by an elected Mayor-council government system, with council members being Randle L. Alford, Ashley Smith, William Goldfinch IV, Jean M. Timbes, Thomas J. Anderson II, and Larry A. White. The current mayor is Barbara Jo Blain-Bellamy.

Education

Most of the county is served by a single public school system, Horry County Schools. Private schools include Conway Christian School. Neighboring Myrtle Beach also has several private schools.

Conway is home to two major institutes of higher learning, Coastal Carolina University and Horry-Georgetown Technical College. It is also home to a branch of Webster University, an MBA graduate school, and North American Institute of Aviation (NAIA), a flight school.

Air

Conway is home to the Conway-Horry County Airport (HYW), a small airport located 3 miles outside of town, along US-378.

Bus

A large part of Horry County is served by the Coast Regional Transit Authority (RTA), formerly known as the Waccamaw Regional Transit Authority and as Lymo. The primary station and offices are located in downtown Conway, near the historic district.

Railroads

R. J. Corman Railroad's Carolina Line is a short line railroad which serves parts of North and South Carolina. Conway is located on the railroad's Chadbourn, NC-Myrtle Beach, SC branch. The historical Conway railroad depot is located along this branch, although the depot is now an office building.

Economy

Notable companies/employers located in the Conway area include:

Media

Culture

Conway is the home of Kimbel Library and the Rebecca Randall Bryan Art Gallery at Coastal Carolina University. The gallery houses differing exhibits throughout the year. Admission is free, and the gallery is open to the public.

Sports

HTC Center, originally known as the Student Recreation and Convocation Center, is a 3,370-seat multi-purpose arena located on the campus of Coastal Carolina University in Conway. It is home to the Coastal Carolina University men's and women's basketball teams, and the women's volleyball teams. It replaced Kimbel Arena for this purpose.

An arena project, known as Y2R2, intended to house the university teams and the proposed future Myrtle Beach Thunderboltz hockey team, did not gain approvals for development.

Notable people