TOWN and LOCAL INFORMATION
LOCATION: The Town of Calabash is located in Brunswick County on the southeastern coast of North Carolina and is the southern most city in North Carolina bordering South Carolina. It is 25 miles North of Myrtle Beach, SC and 50 miles South of Wilmington, NC. Our closest highway is ‘Highway 17’.
TAXES: Brunswick County property tax rate is $0.4425 per hundred of assessed value Calabash City tax rate is $0.0875 per hundred of assessed value
POPULATION: Approximately 1,868 residents and is growing rapidly.
CLIMATE: Moderate and we enjoy all four seasons. We rarely have snowfall in the winter.
Primarily a fishing village with shrimp boats docking daily during the season selling fresh caught shrimp. Charter boats for tours and deep sea fishing are also available.
The Town is famous for its ‘Calabash Seafood’. This type of flavoring originated here and is unique. Others have tried to copy it with little success. If you want to taste the real ‘Calabash Seafood’, you must come to Calabash.
Calabash has all the amenities any Town would need.
Fire Department:
Calabash Fire Department- one of the best and well equipped Fire Departments in the area. Has an ISO rating of 6 which is excellent .
Police:
The area is patrolled by the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Department. The crime rate is very low in this area.
Banks– Medical/Dental Offices-Churches-Post Office-Hardware Stores- Veterinarian- Deli and Pastry Shop-Souveniers-Jewlery-ice cream parlors-supermarkets-clothing stores-cleaners-lawyers and most of all restaurants. Check our current Business Directory for a detailed list.
Calabash is within 6-10 miles of two beautiful sandy beaches and 25 miles to great entertainment in Myrtle Beach. Golf courses abound in this area. Almost all are public courses and very well maintained.
Overview of Calabash History
1691 – Present
Calabash’s identity started as early as 1691 when the Lord Proprietors granted Landgraves (nobleman) Thomas Smith by patent 48,000 acres. In 1734 William Waties and Jonathan Calkins were large landowners in the area and by 1791 the prominent Allston family were raising indigo and other crops familiar to Calabash today. Around 1814 the Northeast branch of Little River was called Pea landing. During the mid 1800’s Samuel and Dr. Lorenzo Frink became large plantation owners and they in turn made Pea Landing an important shipping center.
Pea Landing saw very little action during the Civil War, except for a raid by Lincoln’s Commandos near the mouth of the Calabash River.
When a Post office was to open at Pea Landing in 1883, a name was needed and the ‘Village of Calabash’ was established.
A railroad was constructed in 1905 to handle the giant timber industry of the area. It ran from the logging fields through Calabash to the Calabash River where the logs were unloaded and floated down river to Hammer’s Mill on Shelly’s Point. In 1929, Hammer’s Mill ceased operations and the railroad became obsolete.
The World War II years saw Calabash opening restaurants and serving seafood cooked with a special flavor . This was the birth of “Calabash Seafood”. A few years later, Calabash would become known as “The Seafood Capital of the World”.
Today it is a tourist area, with an abundance of fine restaurants, shops and golf courses. It is home to about 1,800 residents, who benefit from a well run Town Government, one of the best equipped Fire Departments in the area as well as a fine EMS. Additional amenities within the town include approximately 30 restaurants, a medical center, dentists, banks, veternarian, beauty salons, unique gift stores/retail shops, golf courses, mini golf, ice cream parlors, hardware store, auto services, gas stations, as well as a fleet of shrimp boats, charter fishing boats, and a beautiful view of the Calabash River.
