USFWS · National wildlife refuge · South Carolina

Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge

The Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge is a 45,348-acre (183.52 km2) national wildlife refuge (NWR) located in Chesterfield County, South Carolina. The refuge is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from a headquarters located in McBee, South Carolina. The refuge is served by U.S. Highway 1, which passes through it.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Wildlife Refuge45,905 acresUSFWSSC
Official page at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ↗
1fire
active
0505N · 3 mi from the center · 85 acres
Interagency incident data as of 2026-09-17
Incident details ↓

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Wildlife Refuge
Managed byU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
StateSouth Carolina
Size45,905 acres (computed from the boundary polygon)
FWS regionRegion 4
Center point34.5805, -80.2337
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 13)

Boundary map

1 outline

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Fire nearby

Within 50 miles · as of 2026-09-17
  • Wildfire
    0505N

    3 mi from the center point · 85 acres

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge, and is measured from the center of a boundary that may be many miles across. Check the agency page for closures.

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Register listings within 15 miles · 26 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge?

45,905 acres, measured from the published boundary polygon. The agency’s own figure can differ where the boundary includes water or inholdings.

Source: How acreage is computed

Who manages Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge?

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

What state is Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge in?

South Carolina.

Source: How states are assigned

How do I get to Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge?

A point inside the boundary is at 34.581, -80.234. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Is there a fire near Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge right now?

1 active incident within 50 miles as of 2026-09-17, the nearest 0505N at 3 miles. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge.

Source: Fire nearby

How dark is the night sky at Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge?

NASA’s Black Marble night-lights image reads 13 on a 0 to 255 scale at the center point, about as dark as the ground gets.

Source: NASA Black Marble

Are there historic places near Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge?

26 National Register listings within 15 miles, including Seaboard Air Line Railway Depot in McBee and Seaboard Air Line Railway Depot in Patrick.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuge boundary layer.
  • States: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons; a state is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area.
  • Acreage: geodesic area of the published polygon. The agency’s official acreage can differ where the boundary includes water, easements or inholdings.
  • Description: Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.