Holden Beach, North Carolina

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Holden Beach, North Carolina
settlement_type = Town
nickname =
motto =

imagesize =
image_caption =Intracoastal Waterway with bridge in background


image_

mapsize = 250x200px
map_caption = Location of Holden Beach, North Carolina


mapsize1 =
map_caption1 =

subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = North Carolina
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Brunswick
government_footnotes =
government_type =
leader_title =
leader_name =
leader_title1 =
leader_name1 =
established_title =
established_date =

unit_pref = Imperial
area_footnotes =

area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 = 8.9
area_land_km2 = 7.7
area_water_km2 = 1.2
area_total_sq_mi = 3.4
area_land_sq_mi = 3.0
area_water_sq_mi = 0.5

population_as_of = 2000
population_footnotes =
population_total = 787
population_density_km2 = 102.5
population_density_sq_mi = 265.3

timezone = Eastern (EST)
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = EDT
utc_offset_DST = -4
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 1
elevation_ft = 3
latd = 33 |latm = 54 |lats = 55 |latNS = N
longd = 78 |longm = 17 |longs = 11 |longEW = W

postal_code_type = ZIP code
postal_code = 28462
area_code = 910
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 37-31960GR|2
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 1020798GR|3
website = [http://www.hbtownhall.com/ www.hbtownhall.com]
footnotes =

Holden Beach is a town in Brunswick County, North Carolina, USA. The population was 787 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Holden Beach is located at coor dms|33|54|55|N|78|17|11|W|city (33.915271, -78.286459).GR|1

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.4 square miles (8.9 km²).3.0 square miles (7.7 km²) of it is land and 0.5 square miles (1.2 km²) of it (13.95%) is water.

Government

The Holden Beach Mayor is J. Alan Holden and the Mayor Pro-Tem is Sandy Miller. Commissioners are Ray Lehr, Don Glander, Ken Kyser and Gary Staley.

History

Before the American Revolution, early settlers seeking land near Lockwood's Folly River applied for patents and received warrants for surveys of selected tracts. Upon payment of fifty shillings for each hundred acres, the warrantee could receive a permanent grant for Royal Governor Arthur Dobbs.

Benjamin Holden in 1756 bought four mainland tracts and the island between his plantation and the ocean. This island extended from Lockwood's Folly Inlet west six miles to Bacon Inlet. Benjamin and his sons used the island for fishing and cattle grazing.

John Holden, Benjamin's grandson, started a commercial fishery on the island and in 1924 surveyed a section which he called Holden Beach Resort, the plat of which represented the first subdivision of beach property in Brunswick County (NC). In 1925, he built the Holden Beach bridge; it was subsequently destroyed by the Inland Waterway construction. "Mr. Johnny" negotiated with the state of North Carolina for the institution of a public ferry to reach the island, but he did not live to see the ferry begin operation in 1934.

Luther S. Holden, John's son, operated the old hotel that his father had built, started development of the property nearby and became a permanent resident in 1946. Soon afterwards, Luther S. Holden's son (John F. Holden) began building other homes and renting them to vacationers. Soon afterwards, smaller other developments were started west of the ferry location. Back in the early 1940s one could buy an oceanfront house with the land for about $600 dollars. John F. Holden and his wife Johnsie M. Holden actually began the development of Holden Beach that would slowly become a resort area. John and Johnsie Holden had two sons who are named Lyn Holden and J. Alan Holden. Lyn has four children and Alan one son. Lyn and Alan are the 7th generation of Holden's to live at Holden Beach.

In 1954, the island had about 300 homes and a turnbridge. After that year's destructive Hurricane Hazel, which hit on Oct. 15, 1954, the rebuilding was slow. On February 14, 1969, the island was incorporated and, on May 13, 1986, the Town of Holden Beach dedicated a new high-rise steel and concrete bridge, allowing better access to the more than 1900 homes on the island.

The one church on the island, the interdenominational Holden Beach Chapel, began as a Bible study in the home of Luther S. Holden and several other resident families on the island. Eventually land was donated and the church was erected in the 1940s. It was destroyed by Hurricane Hazel in 1954, but was rebuilt shortly thereafter. Today the chapel serves the many hundreds who vacation on the island during Summer.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 787 people, 379 households, and 272 families residing in the town. The population density was 265.3 people per square mile (102.3/km²). There were 2,062 housing units at an average density of 695.2/sq mi (268.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.73% White, 0.38% African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.25% Asian, and 0.38% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.13% of the population.

There were 379 households out of which 11.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.3% were married couples living together, 4.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 24.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.08 and the average family size was 2.43.

In the town the population was spread out with 11.9% under the age of 18, 1.7% from 18 to 24, 16.4% from 25 to 44, 44.3% from 45 to 64, and 25.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 55 years. For every 100 females there were 96.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $59,583, and the median income for a family was $70,000. Males had a median income of $45,833 versus $41,094 for females. The per capita income for the town was $35,114. About 4.4% of families and 4.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.9% of those under age 18 and 2.0% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

* [http://www.hbtownhall.com/ Official website of Holden Beach, North Carolina]
* [http://www.holdenbeachnc.com/ Town of Holden Beach, North Carolina Resource website]
* [http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=41037 Nearest NOAA Buoy]

[Category:Settlements established in 1946