Local InformationAccording to the 2000 census results, Aiken was one of the top 3 fastest growing cities in South Carolina.  The City of Aiken has a population of 25,000. Aiken, the County Seat for Aiken County has a population of 134,051.  We are a part of the Aiken-August Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Augusta, and Richmond County, Georgia.

The life of Aiken officially began on December 19, 1835 - the dating of the charter of the town.  Our city was named for William Aiken, Sr., President of the South Carolina Canal and Railroad Company.  Between January, 1830 and October, 1833, William Aiken was instrumental in building what was then the longest railroad in the world (136 miles long), the Charleston & Hamburg line.

Aiken’s early families loved horses.  With Aiken’s warm climate horse shows, polo games, horse races, and hunts could be held all year round.  Today, is no different.  Polo is still played at Whitney Field, the site of the longest consecutive period of play on one field in the United States.  Hunts still take place in Aiken's famous Hitchcock Woods.  As for Horse races, well let's just say that if you're into horses at all then Aiken is the place to be in March of each year.  At that time the area is host to Aiken's Triple Crown, three successive week-ends of Harness Racing, Trials and the Steeplechase.  Almost every major race in the country has at least one Aiken trained horse in it.

Today Aiken is home to 500 major corporations/industries.