Aiken is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Aiken County, in western South Carolina, United States. It is one of the two largest cities of the Central Savannah River Area. Founded in 1835, Aiken was named after William Aiken, the president of the South Carolina Railroad. It became part of Aiken County when the county was formed in 1871 from parts of Orangeburg, Lexington, Edgefield, and Barnwell counties.
North Carolina Central University, a state-supported liberal arts institution, is a public, historically black university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Dr. James E. Shepard in affiliation with the Chautauqua movement in 1909, it was supported by private funds from both Northern and Southern philanthropists. It was made part of the state system in 1923, when it first received state funding and was renamed as Durham State Normal School. It added graduate classes in arts and sciences and professional schools in law and library science in the late 1930s and 1940s.
William Alexander Graham was a United States Senator from North Carolina from 1840 to 1843, a Senator later in the Confederate States Senate from 1864 to 1865, the 30th Governor of North Carolina from 1845 to 1849 and U.S. Secretary of the Navy from 1850 to 1852, under President Millard Fillmore. He was the Whig Party nominee for vice-president in 1852 on a ticket with General Winfield Scott.
Robert Barnwell Rhett was an American politician who served as a deputy from South Carolina to the Provisional Confederate States Congress from 1861 to 1862, a member of the US House of Representatives from South Carolina from 1837 to 1849, and US Senator from South Carolina from 1850 to 1852. As a staunch supporter of slavery and an early advocate of secession, he was a "Fire-Eater".
David Wyatt Aiken was a slave owner, Confederate army officer during the American Civil War and a postbellum five-term United States Congressman from South Carolina.
Whitehall is a historic home located at Aiken, South Carolina. It was constructed about 1928 for Robert R. McCormick, one of the owners of the Chicago Tribune. The house was designed by Willis Irvin of Augusta, who won a gold medal for Domestic Work at the 1929 Southern Architectural Exhibition with its design. The one-story, brick, U-shaped house was built on the foundation of an earlier, two-story house that had been destroyed by a fire. It is believed that some of the ornate interior woodwork came from the home of John C. Calhoun’s daughter. Whitehall gets its name form the old Whitehall estate on the ruins of which this house was constructed. Whitehall is a Georgian Revival residence. Each of the three sections has a gabled roof. The two projecting wings are pedimented and have a boxed cornice with block modillions, round vents and Doric pilasters at the corners. The central section features a pedimented Doric portico sheltering a central entrance with a semicircular fanlight and sidelights. A Doric entablature extends across the central section. Fenestration is regular six over six with dentiled architraves. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 27, 1984.
John Gary Evans was the 85th Governor of South Carolina from 1894 to 1897.
Redcliffe Plantation State Historic Site is a state park in South Carolina, United States. Redcliffe Plantation, also known as Redcliffe, completed in 1859, is a Greek Revival plantation house located on the site that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The house was designed by the baron Louis Berckmans and was built in 1857. It was built for James Henry Hammond and was home to three generations of his descendants. His great-grandson John Shaw Billings, editor of Time, Life, and Fortune magazines, donated the estate and collections to the people of South Carolina in 1973. The same year it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
The Gov. William Aiken House was built in 1820 at 48 Elizabeth Street, in the Wraggborough neighborhood of Charleston, South Carolina. Despite being known for its association with Gov. William Aiken, the house was built by John Robinson after he bought several lots in Mazyck-Wraggborough in 1817. His house was originally configured as a Charleston single house with entrance to the house from the south side along Judith Street. The house is considered to be the best preserved complex of antebellum domestic structures in Charleston. It was the home of William Aiken, Jr., a governor of South Carolina, and before that the home of his father, the owner of South Carolina Canal and Railroad Company, William Aiken.
William Aiken, or William Aiken, Sr., was the founder and president of the pioneering South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company.
Chinaberry, also known as Williams-Converse House, is a house in Aiken, South Carolina that was built in 1824. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
Coker Spring is a fresh water spring located on Coker Spring Road in Aiken, South Carolina. This spring is formed by a "junction" where the water table intersects the ground surface and according to archaeological remains, has been used since prehistoric times. Coker Springs was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on January 18, 1978.
The Dawson-Vanderhorst House, located in Aiken, South Carolina. The house is one of the oldest remaining homes in Aiken County. In 1785, Charles Richmond acquired the property by grant. Shortly thereafter it appears that the home was built. There are a number of architectural features to the home that are representative of the time period in which it was built. The rear extensions to the home are not thought to be part of the original construction. The home is on private property surrounded by tall trees and brush. The Dawson-Vanderhorst House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 29, 1976.
Joye Cottage is one of the oldest, and largest winter retreats in Aiken, South Carolina. Most of the sprawling property dates to 1897, when William Collins Whitney purchased the property and remodeled it extensively. It now includes a main house, a stable, a greenhouse, a laundry house, a couple of one-story cottages, and a squash court. The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
The Legare-Morgan House is a one-story clapboard structure built in Aiken, South Carolina around 1835. From 1850 to 1859 it was the home of the artist, poet and inventor, James Mathews Legare. In 1870 the property was sold to Thomas C. Morgan. The home, located in proximity to Aiken's downtown area, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places September 22, 1977.
The Pickens House, located in Aiken, South Carolina. It is reputed to have been built around 1829 by Governor Andrew Pickens for his son. In addition, the home is also noted for its early 19th century backcountry plantation architecture. Eventually the house was abandoned, and in 1929 it was moved from its original address near Edgefield to Aiken by a leading Aiken businesswoman and strong proponent of women's rights, Eulalie Chafee Salley. Around 1990 the home was again moved, this time to the campus of the University of South Carolina at Aiken. Much renovation work was taking place in the summer of 2012. The Pickens House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 19, 1983.
The Charles E. Simons Jr. Federal Court House is located in Aiken, South Carolina. It is significant for its association with the many federal construction programs of the Great Depression era. The building, designed by Columbia, South Carolina architects Lafaye and Lafaye, is an excellent example of a Georgian Revival building, a style often used during the 1920s and 1930s for government buildings in smaller towns. The Court House was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on December 10, 2003.
The B.C. Wall House, also known as the “Sesame Lodge,” is located at North Augusta, Aiken County, South Carolina. It was constructed in 1902 by Budd Clay Wall to serve as an overflow guest home from the Hampton Terrace Hotel. The home holds additional significance in that it was designed by a female architect, Wall's daughter, Martha Louise Wall Andrews. The house, which is very visible from the public street, contains elements of the Queen Anne, Classical Revival, and Bungalow Styles. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 27, 1992.
Willcox's, located in Aiken, South Carolina, US, was an internationally known inn during the Aiken Winter Colony heyday. Operated from 1898 to 1957 by members of the Willcox family, the still-magnificent building reflects the influence of both Second Empire and Colonial Revival styles of architecture. The plan of the building is irregular in shape, consisting of a central block with asymmetrical wings. Of Aiken's once famous resort hostelries, only Willcox's is still standing. The landmark property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places March 19, 1982.
Carroll Place, also known as Old Carroll Place, is a historic plantation house located near St. George, Dorchester County, South Carolina.
