SHORELINE MOVEMENTS 

 TYBEE ISLAND, GEORGIA, TO CAPE FEAR, NORTH CAROLINA, 1851-1983 



PART I: INTRODUCTION 



1. This is the third and final report in a series of shoreline change 

 studies undertaken cooperatively between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

 Administration (NOAA) ; National Ocean Service (NOS) ; and the Coastal Engineer- 

 ing Research Center (CERC) , US Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Sta- 

 tion (WES) . Maps accompanying this report received additional support from 

 the Division of Research and Statistical Services of the State of South 

 Carolina. The study area comprises the ocean coast of northern Tybee Island, 

 Georgia, the entire ocean coastline of South Carolina; and the contiguous 

 coastline of North Carolina to Cape Fear (Figure 1) . Unlike previous series 

 reports, map data were insufficient to include bay side shorelines of barrier 

 islands. Changes in ocean shoreline position from 1852 to 1983 were available 

 using survey data from NOS and its predecessor, the US Coast and Geodetic 

 Survey (USC&GS) . Shoreline change maps for Tybee Island, Georgia, to Cape 

 Fear, North Carolina, are included as a separate enclosure to this report. 



2. Evolution of the shoreline has become a point of increasing concern 

 within the coastal community during the last two decades. Evidence is based 

 on the increasing number of reports in the scientific literature which use 

 shoreline change information. Coastal managers, engineers, and scientists 

 have recognized the value of these data sets for management and engineering 

 decisions in the coastal zone. Historic shoreline change data are easy to 

 acquire, exhibit, and update as new data become available. Also, with some 

 reservations, shoreline change data can be carefully extrapolated to predict 

 future shoreline changes resulting from natural and man-made causes. 



3. Use of maps and aerial photos to examine spatial and temporal 

 changes in the shoreline has a long history; however, quantitative assessment 

 of shoreline change from photos and maps was not well documented until 1970 

 (Langfelder, Stafford, and Amein 1970; Stafford 1971;, Stafford and Langfelder 

 1971) . Since then, coastal scientists have used a variety of techniques to 

 measure shoreline change (Fisher 1977; Dolan, Hayden, and Heywood 1978; Leath- 

 erman 1983). Aerial photographs can be used to provide detail and short-time 



