| AIKEN COUNTY |
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| Date
Formed: |
1871 |
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| Land Area (square miles): |
1073 |
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| County Seat: |
Aiken |
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| Other Cities and Towns: |
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| Burnettown, Jackson, Monetta, New Ellenton, North Augusta,
Perry, Salley, Wagener, Windsor |
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| Form of Government: |
Council-Administrator |
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| Council Members: |
9 |
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| Method of Election |
Single Member/ Chair at Large |
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| Term Length |
4 years |
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| Council of Government: |
Lower Savannah |
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| County History
According to the South Carolina State Library Reference Room |
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| Aiken County and its county seat were named for William Aiken
(1806-1831), president of the South Carolina Railroad. The county was formed
in 1871 from parts of Orangeburg, Lexington, Edgefield, and Barnwell
counties. The area was sparsely settled until the 1830s, when the South
Carolina Railroad was built connecting Charleston to the town of Hamburg on
the Savannah River with the town of Aiken being established as a depot. In
the 1870s, Aiken became a winter resort for wealthy Northerners, and it remains
popular with horse trainers and riders. The federal government chose Aiken
County in the 1950s to be the site of a hydrogen bomb plant, the Savannah
River Site. James F. Byrnes (1879-1972) began his legal and political careers
in Aiken before going on to become a U.S. Congressman, Senator, Secretary of
State, Supreme Court Justice, and Governor of South Carolina. Other prominent
residents of the county were William Gregg (1800-1867), who built the state's
first textile mill at Graniteville in 1846, and South Carolina Governor and
U.S. Senator James Henry Hammond (1807-1864). |
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| Population Trends |
Value |
Rank |
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Value |
Rank |
| Population 1980: |
105,625 |
9 |
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Numeric Change 1980-2000: |
36,927 |
10 |
| Population 1990: |
120,940 |
10 |
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Avg. Ann. Growth Rate 1980-2000: |
1.74% |
11 |
| Population
2000: |
142,552 |
10 |
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Percent Change 2005-2006: |
1.4% |
14 |
| Population Estimate 2006: |
150,220 |
10 |
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Persons Per Square Mile 2006: |
141.9 |
16 |
| Population Estimate 2007: |
152,307 |
10 |
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| Link to SC Office of Research and Statistics -
Community Profile Demographic Data |
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| Link to SC Office of Research
and Statistics - Kids Count |
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| Economic Data |
Value |
Rank |
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Value |
Rank |
| Jobs 1980: |
40,144 |
10 |
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Personal Income 2006: |
$4,493,405 |
10 |
| Jobs 1990: |
65,715 |
6 |
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Per Capita Pers. Income (PCPI) 2006: |
$29,912 |
11 |
| Jobs 2000: |
61,462 |
11 |
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% of U.S. PCPI 2006: |
81% |
11 |
| Avg. Annual Growth Rate
1980-2000: |
2.66% |
10 |
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Average Wage Per Job
2006: |
$40,174 |
1 |
| Jobs 2005: |
61,430 |
11 |
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% of U.S. Avg.
Wage Per Job 2006: |
96% |
1 |
| Jobs 2006: |
61,241 |
11 |
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Avg. Unemployment
1998-2007: |
5.2% |
36 |
| Numeric Change 2005-2006: |
-189 |
38 |
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Unemployment Rate 2007 Ann. Avg: |
5.4% |
36 |
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| Tax Data |
Value |
Rank |
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Value |
Rank |
| Assessed Property 2006: |
$466,621,851 |
12 |
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Per Capita Assessed Property 2005: |
$3,273 |
26 |
| County Base Millage Rate*
2007: |
0.0747 |
34 |
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Additional Sales Tax (if applicable) |
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| Value of One Mil 2007: |
$469,203 |
12 |
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Local Option Sales Tax: |
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| Net Taxable Sales FY 2006: |
$1,225,465,978 |
12 |
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Capital Projects Sales Tax: |
1% |
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| Admissions Taxes Collected
FY 2006: |
$728,810 |
9 |
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School District Sales Tax: |
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| Accomodations Taxes
Collected FY 2006: |
$332,895 |
15 |
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Transportation Sales Tax: |
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| * County Base
Millage Rate reflects county mils only and does not include millages charged
by other taxing entities (cities, schools, etc.) |
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| Link to SC Employment Security Commission - Top
Employers by County |
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| Link to SC Office of Research and Statistics -
Community Profile Demographic Data |
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| Financial and Employment
Data |
Value |
Rank |
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Value |
Rank |
| Total Revenues FY 2006: |
$85,870,433 |
10 |
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Per Capital Revenues: |
$602 |
21 |
| Total Expenditures FY
2006: |
$112,689,086 |
9 |
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Per Capita Expenditures: |
$791 |
10 |
| General Fund Budget FY
2008: |
$40,221,818 |
13 |
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Per Capita General Fund Budget: |
$282 |
43 |
| Total Debt Outstanding FY
2007: |
$33,521,367 |
13 |
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Per Capita Debt Outstanding: |
$217 |
16 |
| Credit Ratings(s) FY 2007: |
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Payroll FY 2008: |
$25,497,945 |
12 |
| Moodys: |
A1 |
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Full-Time Employees
FY 2008: |
759 |
11 |
| Standard & Poor: |
A |
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Part-Time Employees FY 2008: |
62 |
25 |
| Fitch: |
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Full Time
Emp/1,000 Cnty Residents: |
5.32 |
33 |
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| Link to SC Office of Research and Statistics - Local
Government Finance Report (Full document in Excel) |
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| Sources: County histories
obtained from the South Carolina State Library Reference Room at
http://www.state.sc.us/scsl/cnties.html. All other sources are listed in the
appendix tables. |
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Updated |
5/6/2008
16:45 |
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