Aiken

Formed January 1, 1871 (32^nd county)

Aiken County (168,811), Aiken (32,075)

The white stucco Neo-Classical Revival facility serving Aiken County was erected in 1881 on the city square.  Park Avenue and Chesterfield Street intersect at the facility.  South Carolina State Highway 19 is Chesterfield Street.  Robert N. McGrath provided the courthouse designs.  The courthouse was remodeled in 1934 and 1954 and enlarged in 1984.  The facility features columns, a dome with working clock, and a green metal roof.  A County Administration Building was added in 1976; however, it was replaced in 2014.  The county was organized on January 1, 1871 from parts of Barnwell, Edgefield, Lexington, and Orangeburg counties as the 32^nd county.  Aiken has always been the county seat.  Aiken County and its county seat are named for railroad president William Aiken. 

Aiken County government consists of a director, a sheriff, a treasurer, a coroner, an assessor, and a clerk (executive).  It has 9 Council Members (legislative.)  One Circuit Court Judges and Three Family Court Judges serve Aiken, Bamberg, and Barnwell counties (judicial.)  The county is on the western border with Georgia.  Columbia, South Carolina is northeast and Augusta, Georgia is directly west of the county.  The Savannah River forms its western border.  The county center is 9 miles East-Northeast of Aiken near Couchton.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Saluda, Lexington, Orangeburg, and Barnwell counties and Georgia and Edgefield County. 

The area of the county is 1080 square miles.  It is 6 out of 46 in the state.  It ranks 11 out of 46 in population in the state.  It has a density of 156.3 persons per square mile making it 15 out of 46 in the state.  Aiken County has 38.2% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 20 crosses northeast to southwest in the county from Lexington County to Georgia.  United States Highway 1 parallels Interstate Highway 20 from Saluda County to Georgia.  United States Highway 25 enters from Edgefield County, northwest, and exits into Georgia.  United States Highway 78 comes from the southeast, Barnwell County, and goes to Georgia.  United States Highway 278 travels east to west from Barnwell County to Georgia.  The county is an overall rectangle.  The City of Aiken is in the western third of the county.  Aiken is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 19.0% of the county population.  The county and county seat are pronounced AE-KEN.  This county is in the Augusta-Richmond County Metropolitan Statistical Area.

North Augusta