Hart of Dixie filming locations in North Carolina

I am undoubtedly one of the biggest Hart of Dixie fans. I immediately fell in love with Bluebell and grew a passion for pop-country music through this show. While the series is entirely filmed at Warner Bros Studios in California (the same as Gilmore Girls), keen observers will notice the difference between the pilot and the rest of the episodes. Indeed, the very first episode was shot in North Carolina in the cities of Southport and Wilmington. A place renowned for filming that has welcomed the productions of Nicolas Sparks movies, Dawson and One Tree Hill to name a few.

In the story, Bluebell is a fictional town located in Alabama, 20 miles from Mobile and 5 miles from Fairhope, which are two real cities. This location is the same as the town of Point Clear, but there is nothing official about it.

Even though I haven’t yet fulfilled the dream of visiting Wilmington and all its gems, I did a lot of research to bring you all the filming locations for Hart of Dixie’s pilot. The one that introduced us to Zoe Hart, George Tucker, Lemon Breeland, Lavon Hayes and of course Wade Kinsella. 12 years later, we’re due for a reboot, aren’t we? Find at the end of the post a Google map with all the places pinned!

Hart of Dixie filming locations in North Carolina

Zoe’s graduation speech

One of the first scenes is a flashback of Zoe at her graduation 4 years earlier. This is not in New York but at the University of North Carolina. The inscription ‘Hoggard Hall’ on the building in the background gives a clue.

Zoe and George arrive in town

This view, which appears on the Bluebell postcards that Harley sends to Zoe, represents the entrance to the city. You have to stand on 5th Avenue North in Wilmington to get the same view towards the 6th Avenue North bridge. Since 2011, houses have been built behind the red cottage and the nature razed. Just a little nod, this is the bridge from One Tree Hill opening credits!

George drops Zoe off on Main Street

‘Golden Boy’ George Tucker passes Zoe and her suitcases on the road and drives her to downtown Bluebell. He actually parks on the main street of Southport in front of The State Port Pilot newspaper. You can spot the architecture of the white windowed facade of the law firm in the background (what a coincidence!). As well as the bricks of the building and the bench where Zoe is walking in front of.

Zoe goes to the medical practice

The medical office where Harley Wilkes works is a beautiful Victorian home in Wilmington at 308 South 2nd Street. The distinctive tree in front is still there, blazing! This is of course a private property, so don’t be like Zoe and don’t walk into the owners’ house.

Emmeline and Zoe go out for lunch

After hearing the news of Harvey’s passing, Emmeline takes Zoe out for lunch in town. Zoe discovers the local cuisine at Southport Coffee Co. & Kitchen. A real cafe close to where George dropped her off earlier that day. The pillars have changed but if you go back to the older photos of the street, you can see the same pillars as in 2011. The counter has also been renovated recently.

Emmeline and Zoe walk through a park and meet Lemon

Emmeline and Zoe walk to a park where the Belles are rehearsing. It is Franklin Square Park, a few meters away from the cafe. We can find there a quite original twin gazebo, the alley with the street lights and many benches.

Zoe arrive at Lavon’s house

Zoe goes to the mayor of Bluebell, he lives in a beautiful Southern mansion on a plantation. Throughout the seasons, Lavon’s house changes its appearance according to the exterior shots. But the pilot’s original home is at 2609 Shandy Lane in Wilmington. You can recognize the century-old trees and the massive white columns at the entrance. It is a private property frequently used for film productions, but you are not allowed to enter it, although you can see it very well from the street.

Zoe and Lavon walk around the property

When Lavon takes Zoe to her future home, they walk through a very pretty alley of oak trees. For a long time, I hesitated between Pleasant Oaks Plantation and Orton Plantation, which are right next to each other. Many websites and even Wikipedia indicate that the show was filmed in Orton Plantation, but it is obvious to me that it is Pleasant Oaks. I also think that the night shots where George saves Zoe from Burt Reynolds and when Zoe and Wade kiss in the car, are filmed on one of these roads.

Zoe’s Carriage House

Zoe lives on Lavon’s property next to Wade’s shack in the heart of the plantation. I believe that this is a real house and not a decor. I searched for a long time, and I think it is also a habitation on Pleasant Oak Plantation. Although it is easy to dress the actors the same and have them shoot somewhere else, I have a feeling, because the environment is quite similar, that it is the same place as the scene before. If you look closely at the images of the plantation on a website dedicated to filming locations, you can see a building with the same architecture and colors. The brick pillar and windows are identical, right? HERE and HERE. The facade is later reproduced in the “jungle lagoon” of Warner Bros Studios.

Zoe buys wine and runs into Mabel

Zoe desperately needs a drink when she learns that Lemon and George are engaged. So she goes to The Dixie Stop, the only grocery store in Bluebell, to buy some white wine. The Village Market in Wilmington was used for the outdoor and indoor scenes.

Emmeline tells Zoe that Harley is her father

In the story, Emmeline and Zoe come out of the Breeland residence where Mabel has just given birth. In reality, they are right in front of the doctors practice on South 2nd Street in Wilmington. Even 12 years later, we can clearly recognize the houses, the red brick wall, the steps and the electric pole.

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Hart of Dixie filming locations I could not identify

Even though I searched for hours, scoured many streets on Google Street View and turned on the satellite view, I had to face the facts. Some places remain impossible for me to find, do you know any of them?

The road to Bluebell

This could be any country road around Wilmington or Southport, knowing that the city sign and bench were likely added for the purpose of the scene. The general storefront and abandoned cars probably were too. But I don’t even know if these two plans were shot in North Carolina.

Aerial view of Bluebell

I’ve often read that this is an aerial view of Wilmington but I’m sure it’s not. The church and the triangular building in the foreground doesn’t fit anywhere in the city. The width of the water on the right side doesn’t make sense either, the river is narrower in Wilmington. Nothing conclusive about Southport either. It’s possibly an unrelated place, elsewhere in the United States, but Google doesn’t pick up on that… Edit: this is an aerial view of Petoskey, Michigan. Thanks Michelle for your eagle eye!

The gazebo on the pier

Zoe finds George by the water to tell him that she is leaving Bluebell. This gazebo and pier will later be featured in the opening credits of the series. I didn’t think it would be so hard to locate them. I spent hours turning over the internet and using Google Maps with no results. My guess is that this pier is on private property. There are a lot of piers like that on the Cape Fear River. They must have been shooting this scene in Wilmington or Southport.

The Breeland mansion

Zoe helps Mabel at the Breelands’ house during George and Lemon’s engagement party. This place also gave me a headache… First, whenever there are exterior shots of the Breelands’ mansion in the show, sometimes it’s the Bragg-Mitchell Mansion, sometimes it’s Lavon’s house and sometimes it’s the home with the architecture and garden from the first episode. I thought it might be the back of the Orton House and gardens at Orton Plantation (which would explain why Hart of Dixie is mentioned as being filmed there). The shutters and windows are identical, but this Breeland residence has two floors, which is not the case for the Orton House. This is very common architecture in the colonial style, and I could not find the exact location…

The grave of Harley Wilkes

The shot is very close on this scene where Zoe goes to the grave of her biological father. I think this is a real cemetery because all the other gravestones look authentic. The little fences and trees look like those at Oakdale Cemetery in Wilmington. But it appears to be water in the background which could also match the Old Smithville Burying Ground in Southport.

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Exterior shots outside of North Carolina

Between scenes, there are often random shots to give some context and life to the soundstage. The actors are not in the frame and the footage may even have been purchased without the production teams stepping foot there. If some shots are of the surroundings where the story is supposed to take place, others are totally unrelated.

Camden, Maine

Damariscotta, Maine

Bon Secour, Alabama

Silverhill, Alabama

Breeland house, Mobile

As I mentioned before, Breeland’s mansion often changes its appearance on the screen.

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If you’re inspired to recreate Zoe Hart’s first arrival in Bluebell, here are all the locations previously listed on a map.
Please share your journey with me in the comments.