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The rich history and culture provide residents with a great place to call home. Enjoy the remarkable quality of Life in North Augusta
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| Living - Community Information |
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Welcome to North Augusta |
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 What is the secret that is drawing so many to call North Augusta home? For some, it is the healthy economy of the city and our region. For others, it is a great school system that scores above the state average and close to the national average. Some like the fact that there are five hospitals with over 4,000 beds and 25,000 healthcare workers. Others want to be close to two universities and two technical colleges. Many come for the recreation steeped in outdoor life. While these are important factors for new residents, many come because our residents have such a love for North Augusta that it results in a quality of life that few communities can match.
Living here allows new residents to save more of their wages as living costs are considerably less than the national average in the critical areas of housing, utilities, transportation, and healthcare. We still provide a good mix of varied housing in strong neighborhoods.
There is a strong sense of preservation and it manifests itself in the old homes that have been saved as well as the style of new homes and commercial buildings.
Our climate has an annual average high temperature of 78 degrees while the average annual low is 50. This makes North Augusta an ideal destination for those seeking refuge from the cold winters of the north or the hurricanes of the coastal states. North Augusta has beautiful flower filled springs, long summers, colorful falls and very little freezing winter weather.
 The Savannah River has always been an important part of our heritage. It is our southwestern boundary and serves as the state boundary between South Carolina and Georgia. It offers recreation and commercial uses.
Recreational opportunities include the river, Lake Thurmond for swimming, fishing, and boating. We have professional minor league baseball and hockey. Varied cultural events including plays, dance, opera, and symphony may be seen from several area venues. Horses will always be a large part of Aiken County and is present in horse racing, steeple chasing, polo, and the Augusta Futurity. Finally, this is the Mecca for golf including the famed Augusta National across the river in Augusta.
North Augusta can offer the amenities of a large town while maintaining its small town feel. There is a strong sense of community that is evident in our churches, civic organizations, and festivals.
North Augusta can provide the quintessential southern living experience to families, retirees, or young singles just getting started. Come to South Carolina's Riverfront and discover for yourself why so many want to call it home. |
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History of North Augusta |
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 Did you know that
the City of North Augusta
was preceded by
three other
towns that were located
in the general area of
North Augusta?
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SAVANNAH TOWN
The first town was Savannah Town settled by the English about 300 years ago. It was located below the Fifth Street Bridge and was one of the most important Indian trading centers in South Carolina. At the time, it was considered the end of the civilized world and the gateway to the relatively unknown lands of the Indian nations as far west as the Mississippi River. Fur traders shipped their goods from Savannah Town to Charles Town where they were shipped to England. The town failed when enterprising merchants set up trading posts on the Georgia side of the river to intercept the goods from the west before they reached Savannah Town. The town died after only 50 years due to this intense competition from its neighbor and rival across the river.
CAMPBELL TOWN
Campbell Town, founded by John Hammond over 200 years ago, was the second town settled in the area on the Savannah River just below the rapids. It was also established as a trading center for furs, other goods, and tobacco. Campbell Town prospered for about 60 years before the lucrative tobacco market started to slip to the Georgia side of the river due to increasing competition between tobacco warehouse owners. In fact, the General Assembly of Georgia, seated in Augusta, took legal steps to establish Augusta as a tobacco center. Competition between tobacco growers and warehouse owners grew so intense that river boat ferries were destroyed, John Hammond was killed, and his house was burned. With the tobacco and fur trade bypassing Campbell Town, the town did not survive.
HAMBURG
The third town, Hamburg, was founded by Henry Shultz about 150 years ago. It was the home dock of a thriving steamboat business between Hamburg and Charleston, and in five years had grown into a flourishing town. The down river tobacco and cotton trade was so good that Charleston merchants financed and built a railroad from Charleston to Hamburg. Mr. Shultz built a 26 mile plank road all the  way to Edgefield to enable the wagons to keep moving during the rainy season. After only 20 years, Hamburg had become a boom town. It is recorded that it wasn't uncommon to find several hundred wagons backed up on the plank road to deliver their goods to Hamburg. At that time, Augusta businessmen started devising ways to take business away from Hamburg. The Augusta canal was built to allow upcountry planters to use the river and pass above the rapids into Augusta. The final death to Hamburg came when the railroad built a trestle bridge to Augusta changing Hamburg from being a terminal point to just a stop along the way to Augusta. After about 50 years, Hamburg, like its predecessors, perished.
NORTH AUGUSTA
In 1902, James U. Jackson, who as a boy envisioned a new town in the bluff areas above the flood plains, developed the plans for 600 acres that would make up the new town. He hired the best designers from New York to design this new town--North Augusta. Critics in Augusta told him that, since the Fifth Street bridge would be the only access to the town and people would have to travel through the slums of what remained of Hamburg to get to the new town, nobody would be interested in going there. James Jackson was a visionary and continued to pursue the vision he had for the town. He traveled to New York to get financial backing and built a new bridge to North Augusta--the Thirteenth Street/Georgia Avenue bridge. The town of North Augusta became a reality and was incorporated in 1906.
The original land area was approximately 722 acres. In 1951, the City held a referendum and extended its boundaries to an area of 5,139 acres. Since 1951, the City has annexed over 6,000 acres, bringing the total land area to approximately 19.5 square miles. North Augusta is located in Aiken County in the southwestern portion of South Carolina and 67 miles west of Columbia, the State capitol. The Savannah River forms the State line between South Carolina and Georgia. The City's nearest neighbor is Augusta, Georgia, located just across the Savannah River.
The best part of the past remains in North Augusta today, blended with a modern outlook to create a unique community that has pride in its commitment to be independent and self reliant with a deep sense of togetherness and achievement.
More Information & Links
Visit a personal webpage dedicated to Hamburg and its founder, Henry Shultz.
Read an Augusta Magazine article about North Augusta's history.
Read an Augusta Magazine article about Hamburg, SC native and Confederate War soldier Berry Benson. |
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