Constructed circa 1862, Banksia occupies a distinctive place in Aiken’s architectural and social history as one of the city’s earliest surviving residences and a notable precursor to the famed Winter Colony estates that would later define the community. The original wood-frame dwelling was built as a modest cottage retreat for Charleston cotton merchant Adam Gibson and his family, who sought refuge in Aiken during the tumultuous years of the Civil War. The residence remained a private home for several decades, serving successive owners as Aiken evolved from a railroad town into one of the South’s premier winter resort communities.

In 1931, the property entered a new chapter when New York industrialist and horseman Richard Howe acquired the site and commissioned noted architect Willis Irvin to transform the earlier residence into an expansive Winter Colony mansion. The original house was incorporated into a much larger Colonial Revival composition featuring a substantial brick addition, elegant porticoes, a slate roof, and an irregular plan organized around gracious entertaining spaces, including a full ballroom. The resulting estate contained thirty-two rooms and fifteen baths, reflecting both the prosperity and sophistication of Aiken’s interwar winter society.

Named for the Banksia rose, the estate later served a variety of community purposes, including use as a boarding house during construction of the nearby Savannah River Plant, a college campus, a public library, and ultimately the home of the Aiken County Historical Museum. Today, Banksia remains one of Aiken’s most recognizable historic properties, its layered architectural evolution embodying both the city’s Civil War-era origins and the grandeur of the Winter Colony period. Situated on approximately three and one-half acres along Newberry Street, the property also includes the historic Ergle Log Cabin and the China Springs Schoolhouse, further reinforcing its importance as a center for preserving and interpreting Aiken County’s rich heritage.