Did you know that the very existence of Aiken, South Carolina, could be called a romantic accident? Aiken's origin is deeply intertwined with a tale of love and ingenuity that you may not have heard!
This love story begins with Captain William White Williams, a cotton merchant from Charleston. In 1820, he built the first frame house in what would eventually become Aiken (you can still see this house today, standing proudly at the corner of Ray Lane and York Street).
The Captain's lovely young daughter, Sara, is our love story's heroine. Her charms set the stage for a series of events that led to the creation of Aiken.
In 1828, Captain Williams and his business associates, including William Aiken (you probably HAVE heard of him!), founded the South Carolina Railway and Canal Company, seeking an efficient way to transport cotton from their fields to Charleston. The rail line was to begin in Hamburg on the Savannah River, with the aim of facilitating swift transportation of crops, goods, and people to and from Charleston's seaport. However, a significant challenge arose: the train route needed to traverse a steep 500-foot grade between Warrenville and the Captain’s fields, posing an insurmountable obstacle.
Enter Alfred Andrew Dexter, a young, Harvard-educated surveyor employed by the railway company. Dexter spent weeks surveying the land and concluded that it was impossible to lay the tracks as originally intended. The railway would have to be run a good 15 miles south of Captain Williams cotton fields (and present-day Aiken!).
Fate intervened when Dexter met and fell in love with Sara Williams. Desperate to win her hand, Dexter sought the Captain’s blessing, only to be met with (according to local legend), a stern ultimatum: "No railroad for me, young man, no wife for you!"
Driven by love, Dexter and his assistant, C.O. Pascalis, devised a groundbreaking solution—a stationary engine with a winch to pull trains up and down the steep grade, allowing the railway to pass within 100 yards of the Captain’s home.
Dexter and Sara were married in January 1834, solidifying his place in the burgeoning community. With his new wife and influential father-in-law, Dexter decided to stay and transform the area. Together with Pascalis, he designed a geometric street layout for the town, featuring expansive 150-foot-wide boulevards to accommodate wagons and envisioned parkways adorned with seasonal flowers and shrubs. Aiken was officially chartered in 1835, named in honor of the late William Aiken.
So not only does Aiken owe its very existence to young love, but one of the town’s most charming and beautiful features--its wide downtown boulevards--to Andrew Dexter’s love for Sara and his romantic vision.
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