Conway, South Carolina

History

Conway is one of the oldest towns in South Carolina. Early English colonists named the village "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.

For three decades, from the 1730s to the 1750s, King George II was very popular in the area. The King's birthday was one of the most widely celebrated holidays during that time. However, his successor King George III quickly grew unpopular with the townspeople. By the 1770s, the region of South Carolina in which Kingston was located was overwhelmingly English, though there were also small numbers of Huguenots and Scots-Irish people. English-Americans in Kingston were very sympathetic to rebels in Charleston over the issue of taxation without representation. When the Royal Governor Lord William Campbell fled Charleston, the people of Kingston celebrated.

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. The areas of Kingston and Charles Town were communities with a higher population of Tories than many other Colonial American towns during the Revolutionary War era.

Horry County was created in 1801, and its courthouse was established in Kingston. The name "Kingston" was later changed to "Conwayborough", to honor local hero General Robert Conway. In 1883, the South Carolina General Assembly changed the name of the town to "Conway".

Geography

Conway is situated on the South Carolina Coastal Plain on the western banks of the Waccamaw River, and is approximately 14 mi from the Atlantic Ocean. U.S. Route 701, U.S. Route 501, and U.S. Route 378 pass through Conway.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 25.41 sqmi, of which 24.51 sqmi is land and 0.90 sqmi (3.54%) is water. The downtown is sited on the west bank of the Waccamaw River where it is joined by a creek called Kingston Lake. The Waccamaw flows south to the Pee Dee River and ultimately Winyah Bay at Georgetown.

Climate

Conway has a humid subtropical climate, with mild winters and hot, humid summers. The local climate allows plants like kale to survive deep into the winter months, despite the lower amount of light. 60's and 70's weather are not rare during the months of December, January, and February. Spring starts in March, as usual for the climatic schedule of the area. Comparable major metro areas for this climate of Conway include Montgomery, Alabama and Jackson, Mississippi.

| Jan record high F = 83 | Feb record high F = 85 | Mar record high F = 96 | Apr record high F = 96 | May record high F = 101 | Jun record high F = 106 | Jul record high F = 105 | Aug record high F = 106 | Sep record high F = 105 | Oct record high F = 98 | Nov record high F = 89 | Dec record high F = 84 | year record high F = 106

|Jan avg record high F = 74.6 |Feb avg record high F = 77.9 |Mar avg record high F = 82.9 |Apr avg record high F = 87.9 |May avg record high F = 93.0 |Jun avg record high F = 97.2 |Jul avg record high F = 98.7 |Aug avg record high F = 97.6 |Sep avg record high F = 93.5 |Oct avg record high F = 87.9 |Nov avg record high F = 81.4 |Dec avg record high F = 76.6 |year avg record high F = 100.1

|Jan avg record low F = 19.9 |Feb avg record low F = 24.6 |Mar avg record low F = 29.5 |Apr avg record low F = 37.5 |May avg record low F = 46.8 |Jun avg record low F = 58.4 |Jul avg record low F = 65.3 |Aug avg record low F = 63.1 |Sep avg record low F = 52.8 |Oct avg record low F = 39.5 |Nov avg record low F = 31.1 |Dec avg record low F = 22.3 |year avg record low F = 17.6

| Jan record low F = 4 | Feb record low F = 11 | Mar record low F = 12 | Apr record low F = 22 | May record low F = 34 | Jun record low F = 42 | Jul record low F = 51 | Aug record low F = 51 | Sep record low F = 41 | Oct record low F = 22 | Nov record low F = 15 | Dec record low F = 6 | year record low F = 4 |access-date= October 10, 2023}}{{cite web |access-date= October 10, 2023}}

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 24,849 people, 7,921 households, and 4,881 families residing in the city.

2000 census

At the 2000 census, there were 11,788 people, 4,259 households, and 2,942 families residing in the city. The population density was 927.8 PD/sqmi. There were 4,783 housing units at an average density of 376.5 /sqmi. 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 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.

Economy

Employers located in the Conway area include:

• New South Companies, Inc. (a subsidiary of Canfor)
• Vulcan Materials Company
• AVX Corporation

Grainger Generating Station was a coal fired power plant operated by Santee Cooper. It generated electricity from 1966 until its retirement in 2012.

Arts and 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.

Sports

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

Government

The city is run by an elected mayor-council government system with one mayor and 6 council members. The current mayor is Barbara Blain who was first sworn in on January 4, 2016 and re-elected on January 6, 2020. The 6 council members are Amanda Butler, Julie Hardwick, Beth Helms, William Goldfinch IV, Justin Jordan, and Larry White. Council members are elected at large and serve staggered four year terms. Each member, including the mayor, has one vote in city matters. Council members meet twice a month; on the first and third Monday at 4:00 p.m. at Conway Council Chambers.

Education

Most of the county is served by a single public school system, Horry County Schools. Private schools include Conway Christian School.

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.

Conway has a public library, a branch of the Horry County Memorial Library.

Media

• The Chanticleer News (the student newspaper of Coastal Carolina University)
• Rivertown Radio
• Horry Independent

Infrastructure

Transportation

Air

Conway is home to the Conway–Horry County Airport (HYW), a small airport located 4 mi west 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 historic Conway railroad depot is located along this branch, although the depot is now an office building.

Notable people

• Bryant Barnhill, racing driver
• Scott Bessent, investor, hedge fund manager and 79th United States Secretary of the Treasury
• Bryan Edwards, American football player
• William Gibson, author, credited as the father of the cyberpunk genre of science fiction
• Junior Hemingway, former Michigan Wolverines wide receiver
• Tonka Hemingway, South Carolina Gamecocks defensive tackle
• Grant Holmes, professional baseball pitcher
• Edgar L. McGowan, former commissioner of the South Carolina Department of Labor
• Kristy McPherson, golfer on the LPGA Tour
• Allen Patrick, Oklahoma Sooners running back and NFL player
• Hunter Renfrow, American football player
• Sheri Reynolds, author and associate professor of Southern literature at Old Dominion University
• Nick Shalosky, first openly gay elected official in South Carolina
• Margot Stilley, actress and writer
• Duley Trucc, musical artist

References

References

1. "City of Conway, SC". City of Conway.
2. "City Council".
3. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau.
4. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
5. {{GNIS. 2404120
6. "A Brief History". www.cityofconway.com.
7. "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
8. "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (G001): Conway city, South Carolina". U.S. Census Bureau.
9. "Conway Downtown Alive - Downtown Conway, South Carolina".
10. "Conway Riverwalk".
11. The South Carolina Encyclopedia by Walter B. Edgar, 2006 - pg. 222
12. "Conway, South Carolina | Advisory Council on Historic Preservation".
13. "Estate Confiscation Lists".
14. "QuickFacts: Conway city, South Carolina". United States Census Bureau.
15. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov.
16. "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau.
17. "Explore Census Data".
18. (October 19, 2012). "Santee Cooper board authorizes retirements of Jefferies and Grainger generating units". The Summerville Journal Scene.
19. "Bryan Art Gallery". Coastal Carolina University.
20. "City Council".
21. "Welcome to City of Conway, SC".
22. "Locations & Hours". Horry County Memorial Library.
23. [http://www.airnav.com/airport/KHYW AirNav: KHYW - Conway-Horry County Airport]
24. [https://coastrta.com/ Home - Coast RTA]
25. (November 25, 2024). "Local billionaire Bessent to lead Treasury for Trump". Charleston City Paper.
26. "Edgar McGowan, former state Labor Department director, dies".
27. Rohrback, Harold. (February 2013). "Stewards Of The Land". Grand Strand Magazine.