Aiken in Aiken County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
The S.C. Railroad
The tracks of the S.C. Railroad, operated by the S.C. Canal & Railroad Company, ran here from 1833 to the 1850s. The company, chartered in 1827, began constructing a 136-mile long line from Charleston to Hamburg (near North Augusta) in 1830. Completed in 1833, the railroad was the longest in America at the time and the first to carry the United States mails. Aiken, chartered in 1835, was named for William Aiken (1779-1831), the railroad’s first president.
The original tracks through Aiken, one of the first “railroad towns” in the United States, ran along this street, then known as Railroad Avenue. Railroad Avenue was renamed Park Avenue in the 1850s after the tracks were moved one block south into the “Railroad Cut.” Though the S.C. Railroad flourished before the Civil War, it struggled during Reconstruction and afterwards. It was eventually absorbed into the Southern Railway in 1902.
Erected 2010 by The Aiken County Historical Society , replacing a marker erected by the society in 1962. (Marker Number 2-1.)
Location. 33° 33.587′ N, 81° 43.416′ W. Marker is in Aiken, South Carolina, in Aiken County. Marker is at the intersection of Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Aiken SC 29801, United States of America.
Other nearby markers. At least 10 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Woodmen Of The World (here, next to this marker); South Carolina Canal & Rail Road Company (here, next to this marker); Aiken (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); 1953 Gas Explosion (about 600 feet away); St. Thaddeus Church (about 700 feet away); William Aiken, Sr. (about 800 feet away); H. Odell Weeks (about 800 feet away); Highland Park Hotel (approx. 0.2 miles away); Original Survey of Aiken (approx. 0.2 miles away); St. John's Methodist Church (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Aiken.
Regarding The S.C. Railroad. Replacement of the 1962 Marker
Also see . . .
1. South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company. Southern Railway (now Norfolk Southern Railway) gained control of the line in 1899 and obtained a lease to the South Carolina and Georgia Railroad in 1902. The lease is still in effect. (Submitted on October 7, 2010, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina.)
2. William Aiken. William Aiken (1779–1831), or William Aiken, Sr., was the founder and president of the pioneering South Carolina Canal and Rail (Submitted on January 6, 2011, by Brian Scott of Anderson, South Carolina.)
3. Hamburg, Aiken County, South Carolina. The dead town of Hamburg, South Carolina, was once a thriving upriver market located in Edgefield District (now Aiken County). (Submitted on January 6, 2011, by Brian Scott of Anderson, South Carolina.)
Categories. • Industry & Commerce • Railroads & Streetcars •
Credits. This page was last revised on March 28, 2017. This page originally submitted on October 7, 2010, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 929 times since then and 3 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 7, 2010, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. 3, 4. submitted on March 28, 2017, by Brian Scott of Anderson, South Carolina. 5, 6, 7, 8. submitted on October 7, 2010, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina.