| AIKEN COUNTY |
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| Date Formed: |
1871 |
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| Land Area (square miles): |
1,073 |
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| County Seat: |
Aiken |
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| Other Cities and Towns: |
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 |
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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 |
| Census Population 1990 |
120,940 |
10 |
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Numeric Change Census 1990-2010 |
39,159 |
12 |
| Census Population 2000 |
142,552 |
10 |
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Percent Change Census 1990-2010 |
32.4% |
13 |
| Census Population 2010 |
160,099 |
11 |
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Numeric Change Pop. Est. 2010-2011 |
308 |
16 |
| Population Estimate 2010 |
160,374 |
11 |
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Percent Change Pop. Est. 2010-2011 |
0.2% |
19 |
| Population Estimate 2011 |
160,682 |
11 |
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Persons Per Square Mile |
149.2 |
16 |
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| Economic Data |
Value |
Rank |
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Value |
Rank |
| Jobs 2010 |
62,692 |
10 |
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Personal Income 2010, in thousands |
$5,504,829 |
11 |
| Jobs 2009 |
60,779 |
10 |
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Per Capita Personal Income 2010 |
$34,325 |
7 |
| Jobs 2000 |
61,462 |
11 |
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% of U.S. Per Capita PI 2010 |
86% |
7 |
| Jobs 1990 |
65,715 |
6 |
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Average Wage Per Job 2010 |
$46,561 |
1 |
| Avg. Ann. Growth Rate Jobs
1990-2010 |
-0.2% |
24 |
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% of U.S. Avg. Wage Per Job 2010 |
99% |
1 |
| Percent Change Jobs
2009-2010 |
3.1% |
3 |
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Unemployment Rate 2011 |
8.8% |
40 |
| Numeric Change Jobs
2009-2010 |
1,913 |
2 |
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Value |
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| Tax Data |
Value |
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Per Capita Assessed Property 2010 |
$3,437 |
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| Assessed Property 2010 |
$550,259,888 |
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Additional Sales Tax, if applicable: |
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| County Base Millage Rate
2011 |
0.0699 |
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Local Option Sales Tax |
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| Value of One Mil 2011 |
$566,000 |
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Capital Projects Sales Tax |
1.0% |
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| Net Taxable Sales FY10 |
$1,068,133,300 |
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School District Sales Tax |
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| Admissions Tax Collected
FY10 |
$767,807 |
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Transportation Sales Tax |
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| Accommodations Tax
Collected FY10 |
$428,085 |
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Value |
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| County Finance &
Employment Data |
Value |
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Per Capita Revenues FY10 |
$583 |
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| Total Revenues FY10 |
$93,280,970 |
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Per Capita Expenditures FY10 |
$633 |
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| Total Expenditures FY10 |
$101,265,125 |
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Per Capita Gen. Fund Budget FY12 |
$327 |
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| General Fund Budget FY12 |
$52,359,442 |
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Per Capita Debt Outstanding FY11 |
$102 |
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| Total Debt Outstanding
FY11 |
$16,341,478 |
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Credit Rating(s) FY11, if applicable: |
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| Payroll FY12 |
$32,355,512 |
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Moody's |
Aa2 |
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| Full-Time Employees FY12 |
812 |
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Standard & Poor's |
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| Part-Time Employees FY12 |
58 |
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Fitch |
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| Full-Time Emp/1,000 Cnty
Residents |
5.07 |
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