Goose Creek, South Carolina

Goose Creek, South Carolina
—  City  —
Location of Goose Creek, South Carolina
Coordinates: 33°0′N 80°2′W
Country	United States
State	South Carolina
Counties	Berkeley
Area
• Total	32.5 sq mi (84.1 km2)
• Land	31.7 sq mi (82.1 km2)
• Water	0.8 sq mi (2.0 km2)
Elevation	46 ft (14 m)
Population (2000)
• Total	35,938
• Density	921.6/sq mi (355.8/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	29445
Area code(s)	843
FIPS code	45-29815
GNIS feature ID	1231332
Website	www.cityofgoosecreek.com

Goose Creek is a city in Berkeley county in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 35,938 at the 2010 census. Most of the Naval Weapons Station Charleston is in Goose Creek. As defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, and used by the U.S. Census Bureau for statistical purposes only, Goose Creek is included within the Charleston-North Charleston-Summerville metropolitan area and the Charleston-North Charleston Urbanized Area.

Geography

Goose Creek is located at 33°0′N 80°2′W (32.9955, -80.0289).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 32.5 square miles (84.1 km²), of which, 31.7 square miles (82.1 km²) of it is land and 0.8 square miles (2.0 km²) of it (2.37%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 35,938 people, 8,947 households, and 7,443 families residing in the city. The population density was 921.6 people per square mile (355.9/km²). There were 9,482 housing units at an average density of 299.2 per square mile (115.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 78.50% White, 14.22% African American, 0.59% Native American, 2.66% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 1.56% from other races, and 2.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.05% of the population.

There were 8,947 households out of which 49.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.9% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.8% were non-families. 12.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 2.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.94 and the average family size was 3.22.

In the city the population was spread out with 29.6% under the age of 18, 18.2% from 18 to 24, 32.5% from 25 to 44, 15.4% from 45 to 64, and 4.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 26 years. For every 100 females there were 115.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 120.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $45,919, and the median income for a family was $47,937. Males had a median income of $31,965 versus $23,754 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,905. About 5.8% of families and 6.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.0% of those under the age of 18 and 7.3% of those 65 and older.

History

Although the city of Goose Creek was established in 1961, its history dates back many centuries. In early colonial times the term "Goose Creek men" was used for a group of colonists, mostly settled a few miles west of Charleston near a stream called Goose Creek. The Goose Creek men became leaders of the early Indian trade, and by the 1690s many held important offices in the colonial government. At first the Goose Creek men dealt mainly in Indian slaves, while later the deerskin trade dominated. Several colonial governors were Goose Creek men, such as James Moore.

Military presence

Naval Nuclear Power School, Naval Nuclear Power Training Command, and SPAWAR are located in Goose Creek and Hanahan on the Naval Weapons Station Charleston. Nuclear submarines and submarine tenders were based at the Naval Weapons Station (NWS) in Goose Creek until the early 1990s, at which time they were homeported at other naval bases on the Atlantic coast due to a "reduction in force" (RIF) of US military and naval bases. Large portions of the Weapons Station were closed in the early 1990s due to the RIF. Charleston Naval Shipyard (CNSYD) was also closed due to the "reduction in force", and is now largely owned by the city of North Charleston and private companies.

Police force

The Goose Creek Police Department is housed at the Marguerite H. Brown Municipal Center, along with the City Hall and Municipal Court, and is an active department within the community of Goose Creek. The Goose Creek Police Department is a CALEA accredited agency and works to maintain a good relationship with the citizens using the 'community policing' method.

High Schools

There are three high schools that service the Goose Creek area. Cane Bay High School, Stratford High School services students inside Goose Creek, while Goose Creek High School is located outside Goose Creek city limits and services students from both in and out of Goose Creek's city limits. Goose Creek High school is the home of the Berkeley County School of the Arts (BCA) Program. BCA is split up into different areas (music, dance, art, drama, and chorus) and each focus on broadening the students talent in that subject. Each student must try out and be accepted into the program and only incoming freshmen are eligible for this program. Goose Creek is the only school in the area which hosts this.

Notable residents

• Justin Smoak, Major League Baseball player
• Matt Wieters, Major League Baseball player
• Dan Hiers, Former Police Officer and one of the U.S. Marshals 15 Most Wanted Fugitives

External links

• City website