Community Spotlight: Sullivan’s Island
Handsome Properties April 9, 2021
Handsome Properties April 9, 2021
Almost wholly residential, Sullivan’s Island is known for its luxury homes, pristine beachfront, and limited commercial development. About 2,200 residents call this barrier island home, where they enjoy access to 2.5 miles of Atlantic Ocean beachfront.
With a history entwined in both the American Revolution and the Civil War, Sullivan’s Island has roots that reach deep into America’s past. Every day, many residents drive past Fort Moultrie, which is now part of Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park. Fort Moultrie saw action during a Revolutionary War battle that saved Charleston from British capture in 1776.
When South Carolina militia forces bombarded Union troops at Fort Sumter in 1861, opening the Civil War, the Confederates’ attack included gunfire from Fort Moultrie. The Ben Sawyer Bridge is another well-known landmark in Sullivan’s Island. Rebuilt since Hurricane Hugo knocked it off its hinges in 1989, this swing bridge spans the Intracoastal Waterway and connects Sullivan’s Island to Mount Pleasant.
The bridge provides residents with an access point to the island. Another distinctive landmark in Sullivan’s Island is Charleston Light, the last major lighthouse built in the United States. First lit in 1962 and still a working lighthouse, this black-and-white monolith is now part of Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park.
Sullivan’s Island beachfront is free from commercial development and hotels and inns, creating an idyllic setting for residents. Residents and visitors reach the beach at public access points called stations, a reminder of the time when trolley cars carried beachgoers to the island.
Commercial development in Sullivan’s Island is centered around a section of Middle Street close to the intersection of Middle Street and Ben Sawyer Boulevard. Here’s where nearly all of the island’s restaurants dominate just one block. They include the Irish-themed Dunleavy’s Pub, the family-owned and -operated restaurant and bar known as the starting point for the annual New Year’s Day polar plunge, and Poe’s Tavern, named in honor of Edgar Allan Poe.
Another tie to history: A young Poe spent a year stationed at Fort Moultrie after enlisting in the U.S. Army. Years afterward, he used Sullivan’s Island as the setting for his short story “The Gold Bug.” A branch of the Charleston County Public Library on Sullivan’s Island is named after him.
Homes for sale on Sullivan’s Island are prized by luxury homebuyers who want to live in a quiet community near the ocean, making the town among the most expensive Zip codes in South Carolina for residential real estate. Market data as of April 5, 2021, placed the average sale price of Sullivan’s Island real estate at $3.2 million.
Handsome Homes
Transforms property buying and selling into a thoughtful, curated, and highly personalized experience, expertly tailored to Charleston’s luxury, historic, and exclusive real estate markets.
