Aiken is one of only about a dozen active Simms scholars in the country. Being in Charleston gives Aiken an advantage to study Simms in his native birthplace.

Simms (1806-1870), according to the Encyclopedia of Southern Culture, perhaps more than any other 19th century Southern author, gave a comprehensive picture of his region's historical and cultural diversity -- of the Low Country with its class hierarchy, its agrarian economy, its increasingly corrupt politics, and its keen sectional self-conscientiousness." A statue of Simms can be found on the city's famous Battery.

The College of Charleston has been very supportive of Aiken's research on Simms, who himself attended the College in the 1800s. While teaching his classes, Dr. Aiken was able to edit and write an introduction to Simms' recently re-published work, "A City Laid to Waste," which is an account of the destruction of Columbia, S.C. during the Civil War.

"A City Laid Waste" is a primary account of the devastation that took place in the capitol city after Sherman carved his destructive path. "Simms was there when it happened and he interviewed people right after they had their homes burned and property destroyed," Aiken said. "So people were ready to tell their story and no author has been able to match him for immediacy, details and authenticity." An interesting fact of this is that the account disappeared, so after doing extensive research, Aiken was able to recover the information and have it published for the first time since 1865.

Aiken is also a founding member and former president of the William Gilmore Simms Society and the Poetry Society of South Carolina. In addition to writing on Charleston literary history, Aiken also gives poetry walks through Charleston and has written numerous articles on southern poets other than Simms. Aiken says, "Charleston is just a very lively place when it comes to literary history, most people think of Charleston as a pretty place in the sun with lots of great architecture, but Charleston is also very important from a literary point of view."

Dr. Aiken has four degrees that include a bachelor's degree from Baylor University in Waco, Texas, a master's of divinity from Duke University, another master's from the University of Georgia, and a doctorate from The State University of New York at Stony Brook.

When Aiken came to Charleston to study Simms, the College of Charleston was very supportive of his research while teaching English. While teaching freshmen classes, Dr. Aiken is allowed to choose his own textbooks and includes the Simms' book “The Golden Christmas" in his classes.

Many people do not know exactly who William Gilmore Simms was. For those who do not, Aiken has a plan to change that. When Aiken moved to Chareston 12 years ago, he says there was not a single copy of "The Golden Christmas" in the entire Lowcountry. Aiken says he had an original copy of the book published in 1852 that he had bought 20 years earlier for $400. Aiken says he sacrificed his copy of the book and photocopied it, bringing the total number up to about a thousand copies of the book.

"Many C of C students have read this book in my classes, and they give it to their parents and grandparents to read," he says. "It's a great Charleston book."

With Charleston being a historic college town, and with many students being from out of town, not many people, including local Charlestonians, actually know about William Gilmore Simms. Aside from teaching undergraduate English classes, Dr. Aiken excels at educating others in Simms and Charleston literary history. "Basically I am tring to salvage lost primary documents, these are important sources that tell Charlestonians about their past and tell South Carolinians about their past," Aiken says. "These documents have disappeared and I've tried to reintroduce them to people."

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