Founded in 1835, the city of Aiken was named after William Aiken, the president of the South Carolina Railroad. The town is the county seat of Aiken County, South Carolina, United States, which was formed in 1871 from parts of Orangeburg, Lexington, Edgefield, and Barnwell counties. With Augusta, Georgia, it is one of the two largest cities of the Central Savannah River Area. It is part of the Augusta-Richmond County Metropolitan Statistical Area. Aiken is home to the University of South Carolina Aiken. The population was 30,296 at the 2013 census. Aiken was recognized with the All-America City Award in 1997 by the National Civic League.
Geography and climate
Aiken is located at 33°32′58″N 81°43′14″W (33.549397, -81.720689), near the center of Aiken County. It is 20 miles (32 km) northeast of Augusta, Georgia, along U.S. Route 1 and 78. Interstate 20 passes 6 miles (10 km) to the north of the city, with access via South Carolina Highway 19 (Exit 18) and US 1 (Exit 22).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 20.8 square miles (54.0Â km2), of which 20.7 square miles (53.6Â km2) is land and 0.15 square miles (0.4Â km2), or 0.68%, is water.
Aiken has a humid subtropical climate, which is characterized by hot, humid summers and cool, dry winters, but experiences milder temperatures throughout the year than the rest of the state. Precipitation is distributed relatively uniformly throughout the year, with mostly rain in the milder months and occasional snow in the winter. The coldest recorded temperature was âˆ'4 °F or âˆ'20 °C on January 21, 1985 and the hottest 109 °F or 42.8 °C on August 21, 1983.
Highways
- USÂ 1
- USÂ 78
USÂ 78 Truck- SCÂ 19
- SCÂ 19 Truck
SCÂ 19 Conn.
- SCÂ 118
- SCÂ 302
- SCÂ 421
Demographics
As of the census of 2010, there were 29,524 people and 12,773 households with a population density was 1,416.3 people per square mile (604.6/km²). There were 14,162 housing units at an average density of 703.1 per square mile (271.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 77.63% White, 10.30% Black or African American, 0.25% Native American, 1.28% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.44% from other races, and 1.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.49% of the population.
There were 10,287 households out of which 28.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.9% were married couples living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.3% were non-families. 29.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.90.
In the city, the population was spread out with 23.2% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 17.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 87.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $49,100, and the median income for a family was $63,520. Males had a median income of $51,988 versus $28,009 for females. The per capita income for the city was $24,129. About 10.1% of families and 14.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.0% of those under age 18 and 10.5% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Aiken is governed via a mayor-council system. A mayor is elected at-large. The city council consists of six members. All six members are elected from single member districts.
History
The municipality of Aiken was incorporated on December 19, 1835. The community formed around the terminus of the South Carolina Canal and Railroad Company, a rail line from Charleston to the Savannah River, and was named for William Aiken, the railroad's first president.
Originally it was in the Edgefield District. With population increases, in 1871 Aiken County was organized, made up of parts of neighboring counties. Among its founding commissioners were three African-American legislators: Prince Rivers; Samuel J. Lee, speaker of the state House and the first black man admitted to the South Carolina Bar; and Charles D. Hayne, a free man of color from one of Charleston's elite families.
Aiken was a planned town, and many of the streets in the historic district are named for other cities and counties in South Carolina, including Abbeville, Barnwell, Beaufort, Chesterfield, Colleton, Columbia, Dillon, Edgefield, Edisto, Fairfield, Florence, Greenville, Hampton, Horry, Jasper, Kershaw, Lancaster, Laurens, Marion, Marlboro, McCormick, Newberry, Orangeburg, Pendleton, Pickens, Richland, Sumter, Union, Williamsburg and York.
In the late 19th century, Aiken gained fame as a wintering spot for wealthy people from the Northeast. The Aiken Winter Colony was established by Thomas Hitchcock, Sr. and William C. Whitney. Over the years Aiken became a winter home for many famous and notable people including George H. Bostwick, James B. Eustis, Madeleine Astor, William Kissam Vanderbilt, Eugene Grace, president of Bethlehem Steel, Allan Pinkerton, and W. Averell Harriman.
Savannah River Plant
The selection of a site near Aiken by the United States Atomic Energy Commission to build a plant to produce fuel for thermonuclear weapons was announced on November 30, 1950. Residences and businesses at Ellenton, South Carolina were bought for use for the plant site. Residents were moved to New Ellenton, which was constructed about eight miles north, or to the several neighboring towns.
The site was named the Savannah River Plant (subsequently renamed the Savannah River Site in 1989). The facility contains five production reactors, fuel fabrication facilities, a research laboratory, heavy water production facilities, two fuel reprocessing facilities and tritium recovery facilities.
Historic places
- Aiken Golf Club
- Aiken Polo Club
- Aiken Preparatory School
- Aiken Tennis Club
- Hopelands Gardens
- Old Aiken Post Office
- Palmetto Golf Club
- St. Mary Help of Christians Catholic Church
- Whitehall mansion
- The Aiken Colored Cemetery, Aiken Mile Track, Aiken Training Track, Aiken Winter Colony Historic District I, Aiken Winter Colony Historic District II, Aiken Winter Colony Historic District III, Chancellor James P. Carroll House, Chinaberry, Coker Spring, Court Tennis Building, Crossways, Dawson-Vanderhorst House, Immanuel School, Joye Cottage, Legare-Morgan House, Phelps House, Pickens House, St. Mary Help of Christians Church, St. Thaddeus Episcopal Church, Charles E. Simons, Jr. Federal Court House, Whitehall, and Willcox's are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Education
Schools
Public schools:
- Aiken Elementary School
- Aiken High School
- Aiken Middle School
- East Aiken School of the Arts
- JD Lever Elementary School
- Kennedy Middle School
- Lloyd Kennedy Charter School
- Millbrook Elementary School
- North Aiken Elementary School
- Schofield Middle School
- Silver Bluff High School
- South Aiken High School
Private schools:
- Aiken Christian School
- Mead Hall Episcopal School
- Palmetto Academy Day School
- St. Mary Help of Christians Catholic School
- Second Baptist Christian Preparatory School
- South Aiken Baptist Christian School
Charter schools:
- Aiken Performing Arts Academy
- Lloyd Kennedy Charter School
Colleges and universities
- Aiken Technical College
- University of South Carolina at Aiken
Steeplechase racing
The Aiken Steeplechase Association founded in 1930, hosts the Imperial Cup each March and the Holiday Cup in October, both of which are steeplechase races sanctioned by the National Steeplechase Association. This event draws more than 30,000 spectators.
The Aiken Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame and Museum was established in 1977 as a tribute to the famous flat racing and steeplechase Thoroughbred horses that were trained at the Aiken Training Track.
Other events
Aiken hosts many polo matches at the numerous polo fields located in the city. Other local events include:
- Aiken Triple Crown
- Aiken's Makin'
- Battle of Aiken Reenactment
- Bluegrass Festival
- Fall Steeplechase
- Hops & Hogs
- The Lobster Races
- Western Carolina State Fair
- The Whiskey Road Race
Attractions
- Aiken Center for Arts - Hosts educational classes, fine arts gallery, and exhibition opportunities.
- Aiken County Farmers Market - The oldest food market in South Carolina.
- Aiken County Historical Museum - A living museum, also known as "Banksia" after the banksia rose, displays special exhibits of items from residents.
- Aiken State Park
- Aiken Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame and Museum - Displays the area's rich thoroughbred history with memorabilia, photography, and trophies.
- Aiken Visitors Center and Train Museum - The railroad depot is located on the second floor and had nine dioramas depicting railroad history.
- Center for African American History, Art and Culture - Hosts special events of African American history.
- DuPont Planetarium and RPSEC Observatory - Provides live presentations of stars, constellation, and visible planets.
- Juilliard in Aiken - Live artistic performances, classes, lectures, and workshops.
- Redcliffe Plantation State Historic Site - Explore the events and lifestyle of enslavement.
- Rose Hill Estate - Historic housing for overnight stay, weddings, reunions, meetings, and dinner parties.
Notable people
In the late 19th century and the first part of the 20th century, Aiken served as a winter playground for many of the country's wealthiest families, such as the Vanderbilts, Bostwicks, and the Whitneys.
- Lee Atwater (1951-1991), Republican strategist, advisor to Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush; was raised in Aiken
- George H. Bostwick (1909â€"1982), court tennis player, steeplechase jockey and horse trainer, eight-goal polo player; "Pete" was grandson of Jabez A. Bostwick, wealthy Standard Oil partner
- Anna Camp, actress, played Sarah Newline in HBO series True Blood and Aubrey in film Pitch Perfect
- Jimmy Carter, boxer, member of International Boxing Hall of Fame
- Barney Chavous, NFL player for the Denver Broncos
- Corey Chavous, NFL player
- F. Ambrose Clark, equestrian, heir to Singer Sewing Machine Company fortune
- Dwight F. Davis, tennis player, founder of Davis Cup; had a home in Aiken
- Robert C. De Large (1842â€"1874), born in Aiken, United States congressman from South Carolina in a contested election
- Matilda Evans, first African-American woman licensed to practice medicine in South Carolina
- Thomas Hitchcock and wife Louise owned 3,000-acre (12Â km2) estate near Aiken where in 1892 he founded the Palmetto Golf Club; in 1916, Louise founded Aiken Preparatory School; they built a steeplechase training center
- Tommy Hitchcock, Jr. (1900â€"1944), son of Thomas and Louise Hitchcock, born in Aiken; polo player; veteran of the Lafayette Escadrille in World War I, was killed in World War II.
- Hope Goddard Iselin, wife of Charles Oliver Iselin and original owner of Hopeland Gardens in Aiken
- Kevin Kisner, professional golfer
- Seymour H. Knox II and sister Dorothy, heirs to founder of F. W. Woolworth Company
- Fred L. Lowery, Southern Baptist clergyman, began pastorate at Bethel Baptist Church in Aiken in 1960
- Devereux Milburn, grandson of Charles Steele, a senior partner at J. P. Morgan & Company, a 10-goal polo player and one of what was known as the Big Four in international polo
- Eugene Odum, author of Fundamentals of Ecology, founded Savannah River Ecology Laboratory south of Aiken to study ecological impacts of nuclear facility
- Michael Dean Perry, former NFL defensive lineman, six-time Pro Bowl selection (1989-91, 93-94, 96), NCAA first-team All-American (1987)
- William Refrigerator Perry, former NFL defensive lineman with Super Bowl XX champion Chicago Bears and 3-time NCAA All-American (1982â€"1984)
- Frederick H. Prince, financier who purchased William Kissam Vanderbilt cottage Marble House in Newport, Rhode Island
- David Samson, former Chairman of Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
- Pat Sawilowsky (b. 1930), past president of National Ladies Auxiliary of Jewish War Veterans; her father, Herbert B. Ram, owned and named Patricia Theater in downtown Aiken after her, and the companion Rosemary Theater was named for her sister.
- Charlie Simpkins, silver medalist, triple jump, 1992 Summer Olympics
- Grace Taylor, gymnast
- Strom Thurmond (1902â€"2003), former US Senator who owned several residences in Aiken
- William Kissam Vanderbilt, had a home in Aiken called Elm Court
- Dekoda Watson, athlete, linebacker with San Francisco 49ers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers; 2006 graduate of South Aiken High School
- William C. Whitney, helped establish "Winter Colony," a 69-room winter residence
- Paul Wight (Big Show), seven-time world champion in wrestling
- Paul Williams, former WBO welterweight champion
- Troy Williamson, professional football player
- Gamel Woolsey (1895â€"1968), writer, coined phrase "pornography of violence" in her memoir of Spanish Civil War, Death's Other Kingdom (also published as Malaga Burning), born in Aiken
- Hastings Wyman, political consultant, journalist, author, born in Aiken in 1939
- Marly Youmans, novelist and poet, born in Aiken
The Southside
The Southside is the southern area of the city of Aiken, which strongly increased in development after the construction of the Savannah River Site. It now serves as the premiere shopping district in Aiken County, being the location of the Aiken Mall, multiple retail stores, and several restaurants. Two large residential communities, Houndslake Country Club and Woodside Plantation, have multiple golf courses within the communities. Many newcomers take up residence in either Houndslake or Woodside; however, the most prestigious homes are located in historic downtown Aiken.
See also
- University of South Carolina Aiken
References
External links
- Official website
- Greater Aiken Chamber of Commerce
- Visit Aiken!
- Aiken High School
- Savannah River Site History
- Hitchcock Woods, 2,100-acre (850Â ha) urban forest
- Houndslake Country Club
- Mead Hall Episcopal School
- City of Aiken Historical Marker