From a home to the fierce Westo tribe to a hub of the equestrian
industry, Aiken County has had a huge influence on South Carolina. And
some of the structures that mark that history have disappeared. More
than two hundred years ago, the Horse Creek Chickasaw Squirrel King held
court near North Augusta. The first locomotive built for public
transportation, the Best Friend from Charleston to Hamburg, first ran in
the area. The home of noted businessman Richard Flint Howe hosted both
the Duke and Duchess of Windsor and students of the University of South
Carolina Aiken. William Gregg and the Graniteville Mill helped shape the
textile industry in the state. Author Alexia Jones Helsley details the
lost history of Aiken County.